Pain in the neck
by PTenigma
Summary: <html><head></head>The partners are in a car chase pursuing a suspect and one of them gets hurt.  comfort to follow...</html>
1. Chapter 1

This popped into my head and needed to be written. The chapters will be shorter than I normally do, but I am hoping that will mean I can update more often if there is desire for that. Review and let me know what you think of the beginning. I will try to update daily...

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><p>They were chasing the suspects down the road at break neck pace. If this dirt road could even be called a road. Steve was swerving back and forth trying to force the other car off the road to no avail. Danny's shoulder hit the window hard on the last curve and he uttered a few profanities in Steve's general direction before taking a stronger hold on the door and making sure that his seatbelt was securely fastened.<p>

Then there was gunfire. The windshield spider-webbed as the bullet penetrated, but missed both of the 5-0 partners. Danny unbuckled and reached out the side window to take a shot. The car swerved and Danny missed. All of a sudden there was another vehicle behind them and they were getting boxed in. Danny leaned out again this time taking out the rear tire of the lead car. The car in front of them stopped suddenly. Steve was able to brace himself as he had anticipated it and stopped in time to miss the other car, however Danny was slammed forward and then backward pretty violently as he was still settling into his seat.

Before Danny had a chance to shake the stars out of his vision they were rear-ended by the car behind them as it didn't have time to react to their sudden stop. Steve was out of the car before Danny even knew what happened. He was chasing after the men from the first car who had decided to head into the jungle. Of course they went into the jungle...they always go into the jungle Danny thought with disgust.

He sat for a split second getting himself together and then he checked the car behind him. The man was bleeding from the head, obviously having hit his head in the crash. He had his gun drawn and was already out of the car. Danny used the camaro as a shield and shot off a round. The man returned fire. Danny took a second shot and hit the man square in the chest. He crumpled to the ground as a pool of blood formed around him. Danny lowered his weapon, but then felt another bullet barely miss his arm. There had been a second man in the car. Crap, Danny thought. He turned around and fired. He hit the gunman in the shoulder. The man kept shooting, fortunately for Danny his aim wasn't that good. Danny was able to hit the staggering man once in the leg and he was forced to the ground. Danny took his weapon and cuffed him. He went to the other man who had no pulse. He took his weapon as well and he called for backup. Then he heard another gunshot echo through the trees. He knew that he was the only backup for right now. He ran to Steve. He just hoped he wasn't too late.


	2. Chapter 2

As long as everyone is enjoying this I will continue to keep updating it daily, so keep reviewing and let me know if you are enjoying it. Your reviews keep me on track.

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><p>Danny sped up his running, worried what he would find when he finally got to Steve. When he caught up with Steve, he found one of the men on the ground with a bullet wound to the head, clearly dead. Danny wasn't that surprised. Steve was a good shot after all. The second guy was on his knees with his hands behind his back. He looked like he had been the lucky volunteer for being Steve's personal punching bag. Danny followed the kneeling man's line of vision to Steve. He had a gash on his face and it looked like he had taken a few punches as well. Steve looked up and said with a smirk, "hey nice of you to join us", followed quickly by "Book em Danno."<p>

Danny brought the newest cuffed suspect to reunite with his partner and read the remaining suspects their rights while Steve called it in to HPD to have an officer come and pick them up as well as the two dead suspects. They finished with their part and left the rest to HPD. They returned to the car to head back to headquarters to start the paperwork. Steve went to the trunk and got something to wipe the blood off his face and then got behind the wheel as Danny eased into the passenger side.

After a few minutes of silence, Steve decided to poke at Danny a little. A ranting Danny was OK. A quiet Danny was worrisome. "So you're not going to read me the riot act or yell at me for running off without you or without waiting for backup? I really thought that you were right behind me. I know that you have shorter legs than me, but at least one of your guys was hurt and bleeding from his head and the other was dazed at the least..."Steve started.

Then a thought jumped into Steve's head and he felt like a jerk. Walking back to the car he had noticed that Danny was moving a little more stiffly and definitely slower. Despite Steve's joke about Danny's shorter legs, the detective was usually pretty close behind him. Then he thought he figured it out.

"Damn, is your knee OK? They didn't get the drop on you did they?" Steve asked, but was met with silence so he continued. "You didn't hurt is chasing after them...or me did you?" Steve asked with real concern in his voice.

"No, my knee is fine. I just thought I'd take the scenic route. I can't fly like you Superman, remember. I left the car just a few seconds after you and I had 2 perps of my own to deal with just like you remember?" Danny defended roughly. His knee didn't hurt. Sure it ached a little, but that was normal after any of the crazy foot pursuits that Steve took them on.

"Maybe you better lay of the malsadas and start training with me" Steve said with a grin to hid the worry that was nagging at him as he wondered if his partner was hiding something from him.

"Whatever. I feel a headache coming on. Do you think you could leave the insults for another time and just drive so it doesn't escalate into a full blown migraine before we get back to the office where I can take an aspirin." Danny snapped.

"Sure no problem Danno." Steve says as he turns on the radio and starts to sing.

Danny holds his head and groans. It's going to be a long day. He looks out the window. He moves his hands from his head and starts rubbing the back of his neck trying to ease the tension that is starting to settle there.


	3. Chapter 3

Alright another day another chapter. People are reviewing and keeping me to stay on task, so here it is. Review and let me know what you think and fuel my muse...

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><p>They got back to the office, but nothing was happening. There were no new cases or leads to follow. Steve and Danny, well in reality, Danny worked on finishing the paperwork. Kono and Chin tied up some loose ends from another case and they just sat around and talked with Steve. Steve looked at Danny who was sitting at his desk with his head in his hands. His office was dark and Steve knew that Danny's headache must have gotten worse. He felt a little guilty because he was sure that the paperwork that he left for Danny hadn't helped it.<p>

Noticing the unusual absence of bickering and rants, Kono asked Steve "Hey, is Danny OK? He's been quiet since you guys got back. I saw the lights dimmed and I figured he had a headache so I didn't want to bother him" she added.

"Yeah, he said something about a headache. Something about wanting me to be stop talking to him." Steve said with a grin remembering his singing in the car. Steve knew that Danny would sometimes get headaches from stress and preferred to be just left alone to deal with them when they happened. He knew Danny would want to finish his work before he laid down to sleep it off though.

Steve thought for a minute and then said "Hey why don't we call it a day. Nothing is happening here and everyone deserves it after the past few days we've had. I'm going to run to the store and pick some stuff up and then everyone is invited back to my place for a bbq." Steve offered hoping that Danny would be able to go home and get some sleep.

Kono was the first to respond. "Thanks boss. The weather is great and I'd love to catch a few waves. A BBQ sounds great. I'll bring some dessert. What time do you want us?" she asked.

Steve responded "Whenever. I have to go to the store, but I should be home within an hour so anytime after that. I'll start the grill around 6:00 if that works for everybody."

Chin was next. "Yeah Steve. Thanks. I'll bring the beer. See you later."

The cousins headed out and Steve went to find Danny.

He entered Danny's office quietly and in a voice barely louder than a whisper said, "Hey man, we're calling it a day. I'm having a BBQ at my house later if you want to come. Maybe you can go home and grab some sleep and come by later. You want a ride home? I'm leaving and since my truck is at your house and I have your keys, I figured I'd give you a ride." Steve said knowing full well that he could have grabbed a ride from either of the other teammates instead of driving Danny's camaro. Steve was pretty sure there was something else besides the headache wrong with Danny, but he didn't know what yet. He hoped that he could get to the bottom of it on the ride home.

"How nice of you to offer ME a ride in MY own car." Danny said. "Yeah, I'm ready to go. I just finished all the paperwork so I'm ready." he said. Danny didn't want to start a fight with Steve. His head was pounding and was now making his shoulders tense and to top it all off he was starting to feel nauseous and just wanted to get home and crawl into his bed. For once, he was glad that Steve was driving because he wasn't sure that he would make it on his own. He couldn't remember having a headache this bad before even after a really good night of drinking. There must be some crazy weather coming or something he figured.

They drove home in relative silence while Steve stole peeks at him and tried to figure out what could be bothering the detective. Danny sat with his head on the cool glass of the window with his eyes closed. Steve couldn't take it anymore. "Alright. What gives? Is it just the headache or are you mad at me for something?" Steve asked. Danny had been quiet which he expected with the headache, but Steve sensed something else. There was a tension between the two and Danny had been a little more sharp with his comments since the car chase this morning.

"Seriously, do we have to do this now? I told you I have a...stop the car Steve. STOP. THE. CAR." Danny yelled panicked and looking green around the edges. He had been feeling the nausea creeping up on him. As long as he had kept quiet, he was able to keep it at bay. Steve couldn't just let it be though and Danny had to answer him back and lost the slight control that he had worked to maintain and the bile rose up in his throat. He felt the heat at the back of his neck and the slight ringing in his ears. He did his best to keep from losing it in the car, HIS car. He was sure if that happened Steve would make him clean it up.

Steve swerved to the side of the road and stopped the car abruptly causing Danny to lurch in his seat. As the car stopped Danny dragged himself to the side of the road and relieved his stomach of his lunch...and breakfast.

Steve walked around to the other side of the car. He offered the man a napkin to wipe his face.

Danny took it, wiped his mouth and without saying a word, walked back to the car, got in, buckled up and laid his head on the window again.

"Danny.."Steve started. Steve knew that Danny not only had not thrown up in a very long time, but that he really did not enjoy it. Steve felt bad for the detective. He knew that his headache must be really bad. He hoped that his partner would be better for the BBQ as it wouldn't be the same without him.

"Can you just bring me home Steve." Danny cut him off. Then Steve heard him mumbling about May 18, 1996 and it almost being 15 years since he threw up. Steve had to smile a little at that despite his friends misery. He knew when Danny was feeling better he was going to be really pissed about ruining his record and he would probably blame Steve.

Steve let it go. He was going to walk Danny into his apartment to make sure that he was OK, but Danny stopped him. "See you tomorrow. I don't think I'll be making it to the BBQ tonight. Let Chin and Kono know I'm sorry and I'll see them tomorrow." He took his keys from Steve and went inside shutting the door firmly behind him letting Steve know he did not want company and it was not up for discussion.


	4. Chapter 4

You are all too kind with your reviews. I am glad that you are still reading and I hope that you are enjoying it. Please keep reviewing and let me know. Here is the next chapter as promised...Enjoy.

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><p>Steve was cooking up a storm when Kono and Chin showed up with beer and dessert. They walked in and looked around for Danny.<p>

"Hey where's Danny?" Kono asked.

"I dropped him home a few hours ago and he was pretty sick. He had a raging headache and I had to pull over so he could be sick on the side of the road?" Steve said remembering the look of anguish in Danny's face after he was sick.

"Oh he must have been pissed. He's had the no puking streak since what 1996?" Chin asked.

"Yes, May 18, 1996 to be precise. He kept muttering about it afterwards." Steve said with a smirk.

"You think that he is OK? Should we give him a call or something?" Kono asked.

"Sure. I'm sure that he will love to hear from us if he just fell asleep. Sleep is the only thing that really helps him when he has these headaches and this is the worst I have seen him. But if we are going to call, now is probably better than later." Steve said not wanting to admit to the others that he was more worried about Danny than he was letting on.

They called him on speakerphone from Steve's cell phone. They got his voicemail, but there was a new message recorded. "This is detective Danny Williams. I can't answer the phone right now. Leave me a message. If this is my pain in the ass partner, I am fine. I am sleeping so don't bother me. I will see you in the morning. BEEP"

Chin and Kono looked at Steve. "Boy boss, he's really got you pegged." Kono said with a smirk. The team felt better knowing that Danny was fine and would be in tomorrow. They got back to the feast and then broke out a few more beers. After some good conversation, much of which was poking fun at Danny since he wasn't there to defend himself, they said their goodbyes and went home leaving Steve to finish cleaning up and go to sleep. Steve thought about calling Danny again, but knew he would just get his voicemail. He thought about calling the house phone since he knew that Danny wouldn't turn that off in case Rachel had to get in touch with him, but decided against it. Danny did need to sleep and if he woke him up now, Danny might not be able to go back to sleep or get rid of his headache. Steve didn't want to be responsible for that and he didn't want to cause Danny anymore pain than he was already in.

Steve took a swim and then went to sleep. He slept poorly as he still had a nagging feeling that something was not right with Danny. He woke up ahead of his alarm clock in the morning. He went for a run and then a swim to try to clear his head before work. He left and headed to the office so that he could wait for Danny. He even stopped and got some malsadas as a peace offering and left them on Danny's desk.

Danny's normal start time came and went. Danny could be sloppy about certain things, but he was always professional and was on time unless something had happened, but then he would always at least call. Steve had officially checked his voicemail 23 times that morning and still no messages. When Kono and Chin got in 10 minutes later, he practically pounced on them. "Have either of you heard from Danny? He hasn't shown up and he hasn't called. His phone still has the same message on it too." he said.

When the others said that they haven't heard from Danny, Steve decides to call Danny's land line to see if that will end with a different result. He got Danny's machine. Steve starts to get worried. He asks Chin to trace Danny's cell as he grabs his truck keys and tells them that he is going to Danny's house.

Steve has just sat down in his truck when his cell phone rings. He picks it up on the first ring without even seeing who it is. He is surprised to hear Governor Jameson on the other end and she was upset.

"Steve, you need you to get down to the hospital right away."she said.

"Is it a case? I just have to do something real quick first. I'll be there in a 1/2 hour." he told her. He didn't want to alarm the governor about Danny if his partner had just overslept.

"No Steve, it's not a case. You need to go to the hospital right now...Danny is at the hospital. He just got admitted." she said.

Please review...


	5. Chapter 5

OK, next chapter up. I am surprised I have actually been able to keep to the chapter a day. Must be all the great reviews. Keep them coming...

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><p>"What?" Steve couldn't process what the governor was saying.<p>

"What the hell happened? He went home last night with a migraine. How could he have gotten hurt? What happened to him?" Steve yelled at the governor.

"I don't know Steve. I don't know much, but every time one of you guys get admitted, I get a phone call. They said it was Danny and that he was being evaluated and that they didn't know much yet. I asked where you were and they said that he had arrived alone. Let me know as soon as you know anything. And Steve. It's going to be OK, be safe, and keep me informed." she said

Steve called Chin and Kono to tell them that Danny was at the hospital. "Chin, Danny is at the hospital. Chin told Steve that they would be there soon and for him to call them and let them know as soon as he knew something.

Steve got there and demanded to know where Danny was. He wasn't getting answers quick enough and was getting impatient. He finally found out where he was and went toward his room. He was shocked when he saw him lying motionless in the bed with a neck brace firmly in place. His eyes were closed and Steve didn't know if he was sleeping or unconscious. Either way he needed to talk to him so he tried to wake him.

"Danno...Danno. Talk to me partner. What happened? What the hell happened? Who did this to you? We will find them. I promise you we will find them." Steve asked not even trying to hide the raw panic, fear and rage that he was feeling.

"You won't have to look far." Danny snapped.

"What do you mean Danny?" Steve asked ready to go after the evil that was responsible for causing his partner pain.

"This is your fault Steve." Danny accused as he opened his eyes which held pain and anger and were a shade of blue that Steve hoped that he never had to see again, but knew that he would never forget.

Steve's heart stopped. He got pale and thought that he just might pass out. He grabbed hold of the metal rail on the bed that Danny was in to help hold himself up. His mind tried to process what Danny had just said. He had hurt him? Danny blamed him.

"What? How could this be my fault? I left you at your house last night in one piece. How could this be my fault? I wasn't even with you." His head was still spinning. He couldn't wrap his head around what Danny was saying. Then he thought about how Danny was always saying that he didn't want to die for his vendetta. He thought about his enemies and came up with his prime suspect.

"Was it Wo Fat?" anger filled the commander as he thought that Wo Fat had targeted another member of his family, but he had crossed a line going after Danny. Danny didn't have anything to do with whatever sick and twisted revenge Wo Fat had planned for McGarrett. "That bastard. I'm going to find him and kill him if it's the last thing I do. I can't be responsible for any more of the people that I care about getting hurt." Steve said while fisting his hands so tightly his knuckles were turning white. Steve regained his composure after a minute only to have it shaken again when Danny started talking.

"No, it wasn't Wo Fat you big idiot. I told you it was YOUR fault. If it was Wo Fat's fault I would have said it was Wo Fat's fault. You really don't listen to anything that I say do you?" Danny started. He was trying to sit up, but struggled and then leaned back in pain and defeat.

"Damn it, would you help me out here. I need to sit up. If I am going to yell at you, I want to at least be able to see your face." he said.

"Danny you have a neck brace. What happened to your neck? Are you OK? Is it OK for you to be sitting up? What the hell Danny? Just let me know what the hell is going on." Steve asked almost pleading with the other man, but not giving him time to answer his questions and not helping him sit up.

"Just hand me the damn bed controls and I'll do it myself." Danny snapped while patting the bed next to him in a futile attempt to find the controller himself.

Steve handed him the bed controls and watched as his heart broke. It was awful watching Danny in pain just trying to sit up. He was barely moving. Awful thoughts went through Steve's head. Awful images of Danny in a wheelchair. He was pulled away from the nightmare by Danny.

Steve was on the verge of hyperventilating. He had to grip the bedrail to steady himself for the second time in barely 5 minutes as he was sure he was going to lose it. What the hell was going on? What had happened to Danny? How was it his fault? Was Danny going to be OK? Why wasn't he answering him? He tried to focus again and realized that Danny was more upright and starting to talk. Steve hoped that he was going to get some of the answers that he so desperately wanted and needed. His heart was practically beating out of his chest.


	6. Chapter 6

OK- now I wasn't supposed to post this until tomorrow, but I had a sneaking suspicion that you guys wouldn't mind. I hope that you will express your thanks in the form of reviews. I hope that you are still liking it. I tried to check it, but any mistakes are my own. I am excited for a new episode tonight. I hope to still get another chapter out tomorrow...depending on reviews of course ;)

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><p>Once he was sitting up, Danny started the explanation. "I always told you that you drive like a crazy person and that someday your Nascar driving was going to get us killed. Do you listen? No. Of course not. Well I am very obviously still alive, but I probably have a concussion and a pretty nasty whiplash which explains the brace." Danny said while he did his best to point toward his neck.<p>

Steve's mind started to connect the dots. "That's what all this is about? You have whiplash. I thought that you were paralyzed or something worse and you are yelling about whiplash." A smile crossed Steve's face and Danny was all over him. Steve couldn't help it. He was so happy that Danny was going to be OK. Whiplash Steve could deal with. He could help Danny through whiplash. It was all the other thoughts that he had just had that he didn't know how he would deal with. All the bad things that he didn't want to think about or even imagine. But Danny was alright. Steve didn't care what Danny ranted about now. Danny would be OK. Steve would happily deal with the yelling. He tuned back in with Danny ranting about him being happy. He however wasn't ready for what Danny was going to say.

"What the hell is the matter with you? I'm lying here in a hospital bed because of your stupid, crazy ass driving and you have the nerve to stand there smiling? My pain makes you happy? Real nice partner. Real nice. I always knew that you were seriously messed up in the head, but this I never imagined. I had myself convinced that no matter what everyone else thought that you gave a damn. I thought deep down beneath that SEAL exterior that you really cared. I guess I was wrong." Danny said as his voice escalated with hurt and anger.

Any trace of a smile that had lingered on Steve's face was replaced with one of hurt and sadness. Of course he cared, that's why he was so worried in the first place. Steve tried to start to explain, but Chin and Kono walked in at that moment. Steve had almost forgotten that they were on their way. They had obviously heard Danny yelling.

"Hey who started the party without us? Seriously guys, you are going to get all of us tossed out of here if you don't keep it down." Chin said. Then followed up with "So Danny are you doing OK?"

Danny didn't have time to answer as Kono walked up to the bed and put her hand on Danny's arm asking "Yeah Danny, how are you feeling?" They had been filled in on Danny's condition from the doctor so they knew the basics about his condition h before they even walked into his room unlike Steve who had walked in and thought the worst.

"I'm doing OK. Thanks for asking. I'll be fine in a couple of days." Danny said. "I didn't mean to worry you guys. Hope you didn't get pulled away from anything too important." Danny said while looking only at them and ignoring Steve.

"Nah, man. We were all just hanging around at the office trying to pretend we weren't hung over." Chin said with a smirk. "We're glad that you are OK. The doc says you'll be down for a little while. Anything we can get you?" Chin asked.

"No not right now. I am hoping to be out of here soon. I might need a ride then, but no need for you to hang out here until then." Danny said.

"I can give you a lift if you need Danny." Steve said quietly.

Danny ignored him and continued talking to Chin and Kono. He made eye contact with them since he couldn't turn his head to look at them while he was in the neck brace. "I'll call you if I need. I am sure there are bad guys out there doing bad guy stuff that need you guys to stop. I'll be fine. They gave me some of the good stuff. I'll probably take a nap for a little while until they can get their act together to let me out of here."

"Alright Danny. Feel better. Call us if you need anything." Chin said gesturing toward his cousin that they needed to leave the partners to work out whatever it was that they were arguing about.

"Hey Danny. Maybe we'll get you in the water after all. Water is great for soothing muscular injuries you know." Kono said with a wink.

With that the cousins told Steve they would catch him later and left to go back to the office.

"Danno..."Steve started with a voice that barely resembled his.

"Don't you Danno me Steven McGarrett...you don't get to call me ..." Danny started, but stopped when his eyes finally met Steve's. What Danny saw there made him want to crawl in the ground. Steve's eyes were filled with hurt and pain and remorse and Danny would almost venture that his eyes were wet with unshed tears. Danny knew his partner was ripping himself apart for what had happened. As he really looked at Steve the guilt increased. Steve was pale which made the slight bruising on his face stand out even more. His face were beginning to show signs of fatigue as though Steve hadn't slept all night. The gash from the previous night was now just a thin scabbed line above his eye. Danny gave a internal sigh of relief that Steve hadn't been hurt worse. His thoughts went back to when he heard the gunshot and his heart stopped for that slight second not knowing the fate of his friend and the relief when he saw the other man on the ground and Steve looking mostly intact except for the gash over his eye, but Danny had seen that it was just superficial, but damned if those head wounds didn't bleed like crazy.

_What the hell is the matter with me? Of course Steve would be upset that he might have been in any way responsible for hurting me. He is my partner and my friend. I trust him with my life and Gracie's. I know he didn't do anything on purpose. Yes, he was driving too fast, but it was a car chase. Those tend to be done at high speeds. I shot the tire out. He was just reacting and he couldn't have stopped the other car from rear-ending us. Damn me and my rants. This man who barely opens up to anyone has opened up to me and now I've hurt him. This man who cares more about others than himself didn't do anything on purpose. But I did. I wanted to hurt him. I wanted to teach him a lesson. I wanted to get him to be more careful. Well now what have I done? _Danny thought to himself as he looked back at the down-trodden man.

"Alright DANNY. I'm sorry. I have already hurt you enough. I will go. I'm sorry Danny. Really I am." With that Steve turned and headed toward the door slowly. His normally erect posture slumped like a beaten man.

"Steve...hey Steve wait." Danny said softly.

Steve stopped in his tracks. He thought that his brain was playing games with him, but then Danny spoke again.

"Steve, don't make me chase you. By the time I get out of this bed you will be home. It's not exactly a fair fight." Danny joked as he tried to lighten the mood, but it only made Steve feel worse.

"What?" Steve asked quickly. "Do you want to make me feel worse that I already do? Don't bother. I can do worse to myself than you ever could." Steve said coldly putting back up the walls that Danny had fought for so long to take down piece by piece as he turned and walked out the door.


	7. Chapter 7

Even with the extra chapter last night, I have more ready. I hope it continues to please. Everyone has been so kind. Please review and let me know what you think.

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><p>Danny called him back "Steve...Steve come back..please." Danny pleaded as he tried to turn to look at Steve and was hit with a sudden surge of pain. The pain shot down his head into his neck into his shoulders and down his arm. He tried, but he couldn't hold in the cry of pain. He gripped the bed rail with white knuckles and tried to get control of the spasm that was grabbing hold of his body as he closed his eyes and tried to regulate his breathing.<p>

Steve stopped in his tracks at the sound of Danny's voice. Then he heard the cry of pain and he turned around and rushed back to Danny's bed and positioned himself so that he could look him in the face. There was no way that he could deny his friend when he was in pain like that. Not again. His own feelings would have to take a back burner.

"Danny? You OK man? Can I get you something?" Steve asked feeling helpless. He wanted to reach out and grab Danny's arm to comfort him, but he also knew that Danny was still mad and he didn't want to anger him any further so he kept one arm at his side and the other on the rail close to Danny's own clenched one, but without actually touching it.

"Don't...leave." Danny got out between grunts of pain as he rode out the spasm.

"I won't Danny. I won't. Just take it easy and breathe, Okay?" Steve said in a soothing voice.

He stood next to the bed letting Danny know that he was there if he needed him. He just waited while Danny's breathing evened out again and Danny opened his eyes and searched for him. The pain was still visible in Danny's blue eyes, but it was no longer all consuming.

Danny took a few deep breaths and then said, "Steve I don't want you to."

"What? You don't want me to do what Danny?" Steve asked confused.

I don't want you to punish yourself. I don't blame you. It wasn't your fault. Yes, you were driving like your normal crazy self, but it was a pursuit. I should have told you that I was hurt afterward. You did ask. You just thought that it was my knee, not my neck. I knew that you did care. I did have a headache and I told you that. I thought that was it. When I threw up, I figured it might be something more serious, but I thought that I would sleep it off and be better in the morning. That's why I didn't go to your house last night. I knew I wouldn't be good company and I knew I needed to sleep. I took a hot shower, a few Tylenol and laid down to get some sleep. I shouldn't have shut you out though. I should have told you what was going on. I should have called you. It wasn't until I woke up this morning that it was really a problem." Danny reluctantly admitted.

"What happened this morning?" Steve asked fear and concern evident in his voice again.

"This morning I rolled over to turn off the alarm clock which I set last night. I was going to get in early so I could look over some files before work. I went to reach my arm over my head and couldn't. I couldn't move my neck and my arms felt like lead. Everything hurt and I could barely keep it together. I freaked out. Then as I laid there and forced myself to calm down, I remembered the car chase yesterday and knew that was when the pain had started. It all started to fall into place. I knew I had to get myself to the doctor.

I knew that no one was expecting me for a while since I left that message for you on my voicemail before I switched my phone to silent mode last night. I knew if it was an emergency, Rachel would call my landline if she couldn't get me on my cell, but other than that I don't really get any calls on that line and would be able to rest in peace. I laid still for a few minutes contemplating what I was going to do. Then I did the best I could and managed to get myself up and off the pull out. The pain was a little less and as long as I didn't move my head I managed. I wanted to see if it got any better as I moved around and loosened up a little. I was not going to call an ambulance and it was still pretty early. I struggled into a pair of sweats and I grabbed my phone and headed out the door. I was going to call Chin for a ride on my way downstairs because he had a better chance of being awake than Kono. I tried to wait as long as I could to call him so I didn't wake him too early. I started to dial his number as I was heading down the stairs when someone called my name. I tried to turn to see who it was. I got really dizzy when the pain hit me and apparently blacked out in the stairwell and fell down the last few steps. The neighbor who was saying good morning to me called 911 and they brought me to the hospital. I woke up here in a hospital bed with this collar on being subjected to lots of tests. I had just gotten back from the tests when you showed up." Danny explained.

"Why?" Steve asked after a brief uncomfortable silence.

"Why?...why what Steve? Danny asked confused.

"Why didn't you call me Danny? Why didn't you call me last night when you thought it was something more than a headache or when you woke up and were in pain? Why didn't you call me when you couldn't get out of bed or when needed to go to the hospital? I would have come. If I was running, I would have had my phone, if I was swimming I would have come as soon as I got back." Steve said as he thought back to how many times he had checked his phone this morning looking for a call from Danny.

Steve took a breath and continued. "I would have helped you. I would have been there for you. You shouldn't have had to do that alone. I'm glad that you were at least going to call Chin, but I'm your partner... or I was at least." Steve said sadly.

"What do you mean was? Danny asked nervously. He wasn't sure he really wanted the answer to this question.


	8. Chapter 8

Another bonus that's two updates for today. Anyone still interested? I thought maybe we'd hit 100 reviews with this chapter...let's see...

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><p>"You don't want to be my partner anymore?" Danny asked nervously.<p>

"Well actually I figured that you wouldn't want to be my partner anymore. But now that I've been thinking about it, no, no I don't want to be your partner, not like this. You need to trust me. You need to tell me if something is wrong with you. You need to be honest with me. You need to know that I would never purposefully put you in danger. You need to know I have your back on AND off duty and that I do care. If you can't do that then no, I can't be your partner any more. I'm sorry." Steve said while he did his best to choke back the tears that kept threatening to surface. They stayed there in silence for a while, neither man saying a word.

"Steve...let me explain." Danny started.

Steve interrupted, "Wait, you didn't answer my question Danny. Why didn't you call me?" Steve asked again.

Danny let out a sigh of regret and started. He knew that to explain he would have to hurt Steve more, but after what Steve just said there was no way that he couldn't be truthful. He braced for the fallout of what he was going to tell Steve. "Once I figured out where the pain was coming from I knew I probably had whiplash and figured you would tease me about it...Then when you got here and you smiled when you heard I had whiplash, I got mad because I thought it just confirmed what I already feared." Danny confessed.

"Danny I wasn't happy that you were hurt. I can't even tell you how it makes me feel that you thought that. I was happy that you weren't paralyzed or worse. I saw you laying here not moving with that collar on and all sorts of ugly thoughts went through my head. I thought about all of the things that would change for us and how we would tell Grace and I just went to a bad place when I first walked in. Then you didn't answer my questions and told me it was my fault and my mind went into overdrive. You were so angry with me. I didn't know what was going on." Steve said.

"Steve I'm sorry. I should never have said it was your fault. That wasn't fair." Danny admitted.

"No you were right to blame me. You do tell me that I drive too fast. You are always warning me that we are going to get hurt, but I didn't listen and now you are hurt. I knew something was wrong with you after the chase yesterday, I just couldn't put my finger on it. I should have pushed you more. I shouldn't have just taken the easy way out. You said it was a headache which fit, sort of. I knew something else was off though. That's why I drove you home, why I let everyone go early, why I planned the BBQ, why I called you last night and why I went to work early this morning and why I got scared when I heard that you were in the hospital. Then when I saw you I just lost it. I'm sorry. And I'm sorry for not being better when you hurt your knee. I could see you were hurting, but I didn't give you a break. I kept waiting for you to ask, but you never did so I just kept going like nothing was different. I should have made you rest and take care of yourself. I should have helped you. I was a jerk. If I could go back..."

"Damn it Steve. This wasn't your fault. I am so sorry that I said that. I wish that I could take it back. I wish that I could erase it from your superSEAL never forget anything memory. Even though you may think that it was your fault now, I do not. It is my fault though that you feel like crap and for that I am sorry." Danny said.

"Alright, I get it. We both were wrong. Let's agree to not keep things like this from each other and if we have issues let's hash them out so something like this doesn't happen again. Deal?" Steve asked.

"Deal" Danny agreed and attempted to reach out his arm to shake Steve's. Steve met him half way and gave him a squeeze rather than a shake to prevent causing the detective any pain. They both sat there for a few minutes just watching the ballgame in silence. Steve decided to get up and grab something to drink. He patted Danny on the knee to ask him what he wanted and was taken aback when Danny's face scrunched in pain and Danny clawed at his leg unable to reach his knee. Steve immediately looked down at Danny's knee and noticed that Danny's knee was wrapped up in an ACE wrap. He was surprised that he hadn't seen that earlier. He is usually pretty observant. Then he remembered that there was a blanket over Danny when he first got there. With Danny clutching at his leg, the blanket must have gotten dislodged and now Steve was staring at Danny's bandaged swollen knee in shock and disbelief.

"Danny-what the hell?" he asked.


	9. Chapter 9

OK - hope everyone is still enjoying it. I have only a few more chapters written then I have to decide what I want to do so enjoy the next few and then we'll see...

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><p>"You told me your knee was OK! What the hell happened? That does not look OK to me." Steve said angrily as he was trying to get a better look at Danny's knee. He was furious that not 5 minutes ago Danny had said that he wouldn't hide his injuries from him.<p>

"My knee was fine yesterday when you asked. I hurt it when I fell down the stairs this morning. I haven't moved it since you got here and the pain meds were keeping the pain at bay." Danny admitted regretfully.

"Is it your ACL again?" Steve asked with sympathy as he gently put his hand on the swollen leg.

"I don't know. I am still waiting for the test results." Danny said.

With perfect timing, just then the doctor walked in. I have your results Detective Williams. Would you like to speak in private?" she asked gesturing toward Steve and making sure it was ok to talk in front of him.

"No, this is Leiutenant Comander Steven J. McGarrett. He is my partner on the 5-0 task force?" Danny said apprehensively unsure if they were indeed still partners. Danny said looking toward Steve with a questioning grin.

"Nice to meet you Leiutenant." the doctor said to Steve then looked at Danny and continued. "You have a moderate whiplash that will be painful for a while. You will have to wear the collar for a while to prevent you from moving your neck while it is healing. You may experience headaches and muscles spasms at times."

The men shared a look as they remembered the spasm Danny had a little while ago that had brought Steve back to his side. Although painful, Danny didn't mind too much as it had brought Steve back to him just as he thought he may have lost his closest friend.

The doctor continued,"Within a week or so you can ween the brace and start some gentle range of motion exercises. You can expect neck and shoulder pain with activity for a while. You also have a mild concussion, but not too serious as long as someone can keep an eye on you. Your knee faired OK with minimal damage. You appear to have sprained it and it should be fine if you take it easy and stay off it for a while." she said. "There's also some extensive bruising to your right shoulder where you must have banged it pretty good on something. Not much to be done for that, just take the pain medication. I will send you home with a written explanation of all of this as well as things to watch for from the concussion and pain control alternatives to medication that may help as well" she finished.

"Is there anything else Doctor?" Steve asked shooting Danny a look as he was annoyed that there was yet another injury that Danny hadn't mentioned.

"No he was lucky. No major damage. He should make a full recovery." she said.

"So when can I get out of here doc?" Danny asked.

"I would like you to stay over night. Your neurological checks since you have been here have been good. I believe that the nausea and headache were more from the whiplash than the concussion, but the symptoms still warrant some observation. As long as the neurological checks continue to be good, I don't have any reason that you couldn't leave in the morning. At that point someone could continue your observation at home with you if they would agree to it. You will need a ride home as you will not be able to drive until the collar comes off and you can move your neck better and I will warn you that you are going to need physical help at home once you get there as well." she said simply.

Although Danny didn't really like the idea of staying overnight. It was only one night and he didn't think that he was in any shape to go anywhere right now.

"He will have plenty of help and I will personally monitor his condition at home. Don't worry doc." Steve said. There was no way that he or any of the 5-0 ohana was going to let Danny go home without help.

"I meant it when I said take it easy. You will prolong your recovery if you do too much too soon. We don't want you to stiffen up, but we also don't want you to aggravate your injury. You need to let the pain guide you." the doctor said. Then she turned to Steve and said "You 5-0 have a reputation. Please take my advice and make sure that he rests." she said.

"Thank you doctor we will." Steve said and flashed her one of his best smiles as she left.

As she left the nurse walked in with his pain medicine. She helped him put the bed more upright and then shook the pill into his mouth and lifted the cup with the straw to his mouth for him to take a sip. "Anything else that you need?" she asked as she lowered the bed a little and fixed the pillows and blanket for him.

"Nope, think I'm ok for now." Danny answered.

Steve put his hand on Danny's right shoulder carefully trying to move Danny's shirt to get a look at the bruising. He was probing it gently to see where Danny was hurt. Danny tensed at Steve's touch. "That looks...colorful. How does it feel?" The hurt and betrayal in Steve's voice was killing Danny.

"My neck hurts so much that I can't feel past that right now. Both of my shoulders and my back hurt too. I haven't really been moving too much to notice if that shoulder was hurting more than the other. I wasn't hiding it. Seriously Steve if there is anything else wrong with me it will be news to me too" Danny said quietly.

"Oh there is plenty of other things wrong with you. Too many to list, as a matter of fact. Hopefully no more physical injuries though." Steve said with a smirk.

"One good thing did come out of all this." Steve said with a mischevious grin.

"Really? Please enlighten me. I'm finding it a little hard to think anything good came from this." Danny groaned.

"That neck brace means no more ties for a while and the doc said you couldn't drive while you had it on so I get to drive without your bitching." Steve laughed.

"Yeah figures you would think those things were good and by the way Steven, that was two reasons, not one. I thought you could count better than that. I figured that the Army would have at least taught you to count to 3 for blowing stuff up and such." Danny shot back at him trying his best to smirk.

"Ha ha Danno, and it was the NAVY." Steve said with a grin. He knew that Danny knew, but he appreciated the effort that his partner was putting in to try to make things normal between them again.

"So did the shoulder happen on the stairs too?" Steve asked.

"Not sure..." Danny hesitated. "It may have gotten worse then. I don't really know what I hit after I blacked out. I think that I originally bruised it on the first quick turn in the car. I banged it pretty hard on the door I think." he finished. He had wanted to spare Steve any more guilt, but if he found out later it would be worse.

Steve shut his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. Steve was unsure how much more guilt he could possible handle.

"We should call Kono and Chin and let them know what is going on." Steve said.

"Sure. Would you mind? I'd like to rest a little if I can. You don't have to stay. I'll be fine. You can come back in the morning to pick me up if you don't mind. I'm sure that you have something else to do tonight." Danny said.

"I'll call Chin and Kono. Do you want me to call Rachel too?" Steve asked. Letting Rachel in on Danny's injuries was always a tricky thing.

"No, she can wait until later. No need to worry her and I would rather not have Gracie see me in the hospital again." Danny sighed.

Steve could see that he was struggling to keep his eyes open. "Alright. I am going to call Chin and you should get some sleep." Steve said as he walked out of the room so he wouldn't disturb Danny and could talk in private.


	10. Chapter 10

Still on schedule...imagine that. At least one update a day. Sorry not too much dialogue in this chapter. It will be back I promise. You have all been kind with your reviews. Glad to brighten anyone's day with my little story of h/c. Enjoy - oh and keep reviewing ;)

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><p>Steve stepped out into the hall to call Chin. Chin and Kono were both at the office finishing up on paperwork. He told them that Danny was going to be able to go home in the morning and that he was sleeping at the moment. He asked them to bring Danny's duffel bag from the office that had a change of clothes and toiletries in it. Danny kept it there for emergencies. They needed a clean change of clothes and shower during the work day more than any of them ever figured they would. They all had clothes and stuff stashed at the office. They agreed to stop by later and sent their best to Danny.<p>

Steve called the governor to let her know about Danny and that he would be out to re-cooperate for a while. He apologized for not calling sooner, but up until a few minutes ago, he didn't have all the information. She nicely ordered Steve to take good care of Danny and told Steve that she didn't want to hear of him being back in the office until next week at the earliest as his top priority was helping Danny. She was surprised when she didn't get any argument from Steve. She said that she would try to visit as soon as she could and asked him to keep her updated on his condition.

Steve walked back in the room to find Danny sleeping. He settled into the chair next to the bed and put his feet on the bed and watched TV for a while before he closed his own eyes for a few minutes. He hadn't really gotten much sleep last night while he was worried about Danny.

Kono and Chin came by shortly after Danny had fallen asleep to drop off his bag. They stayed for a while and chatted with Danny who had woken up. They had brought some food for the pair to eat hoping it would make their stay a little easier. They left while Steve was still asleep as Danny was fading in and out and they promised to call later.

Steve was more tired than he realized. When he woke up he saw that Kono and Chin had been there. They had left the duffel bag and lunch or what would be dinner now as they had both slept through lunch. Steve was stretching when Danny woke up.

"I thought I told you to go home." Danny said.

"Yeah, well I've never been really good at following directions." Steve said.

"Like you really have to tell me that." Danny said sarcastically.

A young pretty nurse walked in and asked Danny if he wanted more medicine. He tried moving a little and grimaced. There was pain, but it wasn't like earlier. The medication was still working. He said that he was probably ok for a little while, but that he would like to get up and use the bathroom and change out of his clothes into something more comfortable. He looked down at his pants that had been cut for access to his knee. He said he would take something when he was done after he had something to eat. He didn't think that his stomach would appreciate any more pain medication on an empty stomach.

"Steve. This might take a while. Why don't you go home. I would appreciate it if you would swing by my apartment and grab me something to wear for tomorrow anyway."

"Alright. If you are sure Danny. I'll go. Call me if you need anything and I'll be back first thing in the morning." he said.

"Steve, don't forget to take your food Chin and Kono brought. You need to eat too." Danny said.

"I will. I'll see you soon Danno." Steve said as he gathered up his stuff and left Danny with the nurse to do what he needed to do."

Danny let the nurse help him. She was very attractive and sweet too. He figured that she was in her early thirties. He saw a wedding ring and considered her husband a lucky man. He had needed more help then he figured he would. When he was done he asked for more medication. She had helped him to change, get to the bathroom using a wheelchair and then back into bed. She also had to help him eat because his arms were sore and moving them made his neck hurt. She cut everything up for him and covered his chest and lap with a towel in case he dropped anything. With the table pushed away he was able to do a little, but he was getting tired quickly and the pain was returning with a vengence. She held his cup with the straw in it and then gave him his medication.

Steve left the hospital and headed for home. He thought about everything that had just happened. He was thankful that Danny was going to be OK. He had never seen Danny in such pain though. Sure he had been shot and there had been the knee, but neither seemed to keep Danny down. They were both early on in their partnership as well so it had been easier for Steve to compartmentalize back then. Now they were not only partners, but best friends. Steve couldn't help but care for him. Now each cry of pain sent a pang of guilt through Steve thinking about Danny suffering alone all night because he had didn't want to deal with Steve trivializing his injuries.

Danny had stayed in bed the rest of the night taking his medication every few hours and in the morning as soon as he was allowed to come in, Steve was there waiting for him. He had already requested that the doctor check on Danny first thing in the morning. The nurse gave Danny a bedside bath and helped him change into the clothes that Steve had brought. She parked the wheelchair near the bed and explained it was hospital policy and that he would have to use it when he left. Danny wasn't sure that he was going to argue anyway. He couldn't believe how much he hurt. He had already had his pain pills. The doctor had warned him that the pain may get worse before it got better as sometimes muscular pain takes a few days to be fully realized. He told the nurses to give him a few minutes before they let Steve in. Danny knew what getting home was going to entail and he didn't want Steve worried that he shouldn't be going home before he even left his bed.

After a few minutes Steve entered the room. One look at Danny and he knew. There was no way that Danny could hide that much pain from him. Steve asked if he had his pills and Danny started to nod then instantly regretted it. The nurse walked in just then and starting going over all the discharge information with them and gave them lots of information to read. She again reiterated to Steve that Danny was going to need a lot of help at home and that he should be prepared to let people help him with normal everyday things at least initially. With a wish for good luck and speedy healing she left the two men alone.

"Alright Danny, are you ready to go?" Steve asked as he was getting Danny's things together.

Danny hadn't moved, or at least not that Steve noticed and then Steve turned to look at him.

"Hey Danny, everything OK? Do you need the doctors or something?" Steve asked anxiously.


	11. Chapter 11

Thanks for continuing to read. They are finally going to get out of the hospital. Anyway, thanks for reviewing...

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><p>After a minute of silence during which Steve was sure his heart beat could be heard by people passing by in the hall, Danny opened his eyes and spoke.<p>

"I can't get up without some help." Danny admitted regretfully.

Steve walked over to the bed and without a word helped Danny sit up. Steve used his eyes to ask permission and once granted, one hand helped guide his legs off the bed and the other helped guide his upper half supporting his neck. Danny sat up with his eyes closed. Steve hurt for Danny. Danny reached for his knee that was protesting the movement. Steve put his hand on Danny's leg and gently massaged it above his knee trying to calm the pain. Danny unclenched his grip and relaxed a little. He took a deep breath and made an attempt to stand up. He was having trouble putting any weight on his knee. Steve was immediately right next to him supporting him. He put one arm around Danny's back and the other he gave to Danny to lean into. He would have put Danny's arm around his neck to really help support him, but he knew that neither Danny's neck or his shoulders would allow that. Danny pushed down hard on Steve's forearm. Steve helped Danny into the wheelchair, carefully propped his leg on the leg rest, gave his shoulder a squeeze and let the nurse wheel him out to the exit doors while he went to get the car.

Steve patiently helped Danny stand up again and helped him into the car guiding him as he bent his body into the low car. Steve winced when he saw the look of pain flash on Danny's face.

"Sorry." Steve said. He was glad that he had traded his truck for the camaro at Danny's place because getting Danny up into his truck would be nothing short of torture.

"Couldn't be helped. I needed to get in." Danny said sadly knowing getting out would be just as painful.

The ride was quiet. It wasn't the comfortable quiet that friends have when they are so at ease with each other that they don't need to fill the quiet with words. It was the quiet of two men who were having entire conversations in their heads that they weren't sharing with the other occupant of the vehicle.

Finally Steve broke. He knew he needed to. He was the first to let his internal conversation materialize into an actual conversation.

"Danny, I'm sorry." Steve said again.

"Yeah I know. You already said that and I better write this down. Not only has super seal apologized, but he has done it twice in the last 10 minutes. Do you know something about the end of the world or something that naval intelligence has discovered that I should be concerned about?" Danny joked.

He stared straight ahead at the road as he talked. He couldn't bear to look at Danny with the neck brace and in pain. Danny couldn't even look at Steve to shoot him a dirty look or flail his arms with his rant.

"I'm being serious here Danny. I'm sorry I let you down. I wasn't a good partner. I didn't have your back. I should have been there. You shouldn't have gone through this alone...I should have known." Steve started. The tone of Steve's voice was apologetic and guilt ridden, and full of sadness and self-loathing.

Danny knew that Steve had internalized this. He knew he would let it eat at him. Danny was OK with him feeling a little bad, but he didn't want this. "Steve. We already did this. We are not going through this again. This is NOT your fault. I could have told you. I am a grown man. If I wanted you to know you would have known, but I didn't want you to know so you didn't... IT WAS NOT YOUR FAULT." Danny tried to rationalize.

"Danny, stop making excuses for me. I was a crappy partner and friend. I drove carelessly and got you hurt, then I didn't notice that you were hurt for an entire day. I let you go home by yourself despite the feeling in my gut that something was wrong. I didn't check up on you when you didn't answer the phone. You didn't want to tell me anything was wrong because you thought I would make fun of you. You hurt yourself more trying to get to help and then you didn't even call me when you got here. I had to hear it from the governor. Does that sound like a good partner...what about a friend?" Steve said not really expecting an answer, but needing to say it.

They were in front of Steve's house now. "What are we doing here? Steve I can go back to my place. I'll be OK there." Danny said.

"You deserve a partner that looks out for you and has your back and is capable of acting like a human being. I hope you will give me the chance to show you that I can do that. You would do it for me...So, I'm not sure how bad that concussion is that you thought that I would let you go back to that apartment of yours alone. Besides, you do need help and I'm not talking about the psychological help you so obviously need." Steve said with a grin.

"Hey that's my line." Danny pouted playfully.

Danny didn't have the heart to argue with Steve anymore so he agreed to stay on one condition. He wasn't sure that he could get along on his own anyway based on the help he had needed so far. He reached to undo his seatbelt then painfully shifted his whole body so that he could face Steve. He tenderly moved his knee and backed toward the door biting on his lip to keep the pain under control. He took a minute to get himself ready and then started talking.

"Steve I'll stay, but only on one condition. It's non-negotiable as in deal-breaker, end of story, I call a cab and go back to my place." Danny said.

"Alright. I'm listening." he said.

"That conversation that we just had AGAIN. That conversation ends now. I am not going to stay if you continue to blame yourself and beat yourself up. It's over. It wasn't your fault. But you are right. I do need help and I need to know that I can count on you and not be worried that you are going to go and do something crazy because you think you are an awful person. It's done. We are not talking about this again. You will stop beating yourself up. I will stay and you will help me and we will be partners again when I am better and it's over. I will be Danno and you will be Rambo the superSEAL. Now do we have a deal or do I need to find my wallet for cab fare?" Danny asked.

"Deal." Steve said.

"Good. Now do you think you could get your super-SEAL ass over here and help me out of this damn car already?" Danny asked loudly, but with a smirk.

Steve hurried around to the other side of the car and gently eased Danny out. He tried not to watch the agony that washed over Danny's face with the movement and as his throbbing knee tried to take his weight. They walked with Steve's arm around Danny's waist with Steve pulling Danny to him so that he could take a lot of Danny's weight to spare his knee. They went step by step as Steve winced a little with each step as Danny tried to silence his groans of pain.

Steve eased him onto the couch and propped him up with pillows trying to get him comfortable. "Thanks partner." Danny said between hitched breaths.

"No problem. I'm going to call Chin and see if they will swing by your place and grab a few things that I forgot about."

"Sounds good. I need to call Rachel when you are done. I don't know if I will be able to have Grace this weekend and it's always best to give Rachel fair warning if something like this happens." Danny said as he groaned knowing that it was going to be a long, loud frustrating conversation.

Steve called Chin. "Hey brah, Danny was released and he's at my place. Do you think you could swing by his apartment and grab some stuff for him. I thought of some things that I forgot"

"How did you get him to go there? You kidnapped him didn't you? You know he's just going to try to escape." Chin reasoned trying to keep his tone light as he sensed the remorse in Steve's voice.

"No he agreed to come."

"Seriously? Of his own free will and everything?" Chin asked.

"Yep. There may have been a deal made, but I will never reveal the terms." Steve responded with a grin on his face.

"So how is he doing?" Chin asked.

"He's going to be OK, but he's in a lot of pain." Steve said, but didn't clarify that Danny's pain had been both physical and emotional pain.

"Alright, let us know what you need and we'll grab it." Chin said.

Steve rattled of a list of things that Danny would need and knew that Chin and Kono would be all over it.

"Thanks man. See you guys soon." Steve said as he ended the call and handed the phone to Danny to call Rachel.


	12. Chapter 12

Alright- here's the conversation with Rachel. I needed Steve to be his no-nonsense self again. Hope you enjoy. Going away, but hoping to still be able to update tomorrow when I get back. Hope you enjoy...

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><p>Danny dialed the phone. Amazingly, Rachel answered. Danny realized it probably had to do with the fact that he was calling from Steve's phone and not his own.<p>

"Hello Steven."

"No, Rach, it's me."

"Oh. What is it Daniel?"

"Rachel, I have to cancel this weekend with Grace." he said regretfully.

"No Daniel. Stan and I have already made plans. We are going away. We are leaving the island. You can not back out of this. You made your little girl a promise. Are you really going to disappoint her? What is so important that you are trying to cancel anyway? And just so you know Daniel, work is NOT a good reason." Rachel said with her voice tight.

"Rachel do you really think that I would cancel if I didn't have to?" Danny was getting worked up and was trying to use his arms and move his head while he talked, well yelled. Steve saw his face go white and Danny's breath hitched while he closed his eyes in pain. Steve grabbed the phone from him since Danny was about to drop it anyway. He grabbed onto the side of the couch. Steve thought that he might just break the couch he was gripping it so tightly. His body was tense, his left hand was reaching up for his neck and causing him more pain. He was doing the best to bring himself into the fetal position. That is basically impossible without causing more pain with the injuries that Danny had, but he didn't know what else to do.

Steve was irate. He didn't know if he would be able to control himself. He picked up the phone and put it to his ear as he sat next to Danny trying to ground him. "Rachel, this is Steve. I know that you and Danny have your problems, but you know that he loves that little girl more than anything in this world and he wouldn't miss his time with her if he could help it. I am going to tell you what he wouldn't. Danny was hurt in a car accident. He has an injury to his neck leaving him in a neck brace as well as a minor concussion, he re-injured his knee and hurt his shoulder. He didn't want to worry you, so he would rather let you think that he was an inconsiderate bastard then let you know what happened. He is in a great deal of pain right now or else he would be continuing this conversation himself. However, now that I have thought about it, you know what, never mind. Grace can come to my house this weekend instead. She can stay here in my sister's old room and I will take care of both of them. We wouldn't want you to have to cancel your vacation just because the man you used to love and who fathered your child was injured and is suffering in pain now would we?" Steve said not leaving room for any argument.

"Steve that won't be necessary. Stan and I can certainly reschedule given the circumstances. Please tell Danny that I hope that he feels better and if there is anything that he needs, please call. I will fill Gracie in and have her call him after school." Rachel said.

"No. Do not reschedule. I will pick Grace up for her regular visit. Between myself, and the rest of Danny's family on the five-0, Gracie will be well taken care of and that is a promise." Steve said.

"Well if you are sure." Rachel said.

"Yes, I am sure. I will see you this weekend. " Steve said and ended the call slamming the phone down on the table..

Steve turned to see if Danny had recovered from the earlier flare of pain. Danny was panting with his eyes squeezed shutand his arms still gripping the sides of the couch, his knuckles white with the effort. That was not what Steve was hoping for. He sat on the arm of the couch and put his arm on Danny's trying to help relax him. Eventually the spasm released its hold and Danny was able to relax a little.

"Steve...you didn't have to do that. You must have something else that you want to do besides take care of me and Grace this weekend." Danny said.

"No Danny you are right. I didn't have to do it. You are my ohana Danny and therefore so is Grace. This is what ohana does for each other." Steve said.


	13. Chapter 13

Well I made it. Here's the next chapter. Later than normal, but done. Weekend was busy so hope it's still ok...

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><p>Chin and Kono arrived with all the things that Steve had asked for, plus groceries and dinner. Danny wanted to visit with his friends. Lying down on the couch wasn't working since he couldn't move his head to look at his friends. He asked Steve to help him into the large high back chair and they angled it so that he could see everyone without having to move his head. Danny leaned back into the chair the best he could. Steve was there with pillows for him and an ice pack for his knee. Danny was starving, but was having trouble eating between the shooting pain in his neck and shoulders and his arms still feeling like lead. He got the pizza slice in his hand and then slowly brought it to his mouth. By the time he got it there, the cheese from the tip has slipped off and onto his lap. He startled and moved quickly as the hot cheese was burning his leg and he triggered a wave of pain. He closed his eyes and breathed through it. Kono jumped up to help him. She cleaned the pizza off his pants then went to the kitchen and grabbed a fork and knife to cut the pizza and to talk to Steve.<p>

"He's really in a lot of pain Steve." Kono said with concern in his voice.

"I know Kono, I know." Steve said as he rubbed his hands on his face.

Kono sensed what Steve was feeling. She put her hand on his shoulder and said "Hey boss this isn't your fault. It's not. You beating yourself up like this isn't helping anyone." she said.

"I know Kono. Danny told me the same thing, but he's in so much pain. I still feel bad for the poor guy." he admitted.

"We all do Steve. What can we do to help you guys?" she asked with sincerity.

"I think he needs to lie down, but he won't do it with you guys here..." Steve said hesitantly.

"Say no more. I'm pretty sure that Chin and I were due to catch up on some sleep anyway." she said with a smirk.

"Thanks Kono." Steve said.

"Don't mention it. Do you need help with anything else before we go?" she offered.

"No I think that we are OK. I just want to get him to eat something so he can have his meds, and get him to bed." Steve said.

"Oh really?" Kono teased trying to lighten the mood.

"Really rookie, get your mind out of the gutter. You know what I meant." Steve said with a glare that quickly faded into a smile.

She handed the fork and knife to Steve and headed out of the kitchen to find Chin.

"Hey Chin. I think it's time to go. I'm getting tired." She said with a forced yawn as she gestured over at Danny who was looking very pale and pain was etched in his face.

Thankfully Chin was good at reading people and he caught on immediately. "You're right cuz. It's going to be a long day tomorrow with the partners over there out for a few days." Chin said lightly.

"Hey, I'm the only one injured here, why won't Steve be in?" Danny questioned.

"It seems I have an injured partner who needs me" Steve said with a smile.

"I'll be fine." Danny said.

"Yes, you will be and I will be right by your side until you are." Steve said with a smirk. "Governor's orders." he added.

"Figures, I get hurt and then you get vacation time, how is that fair?" Danny tried to match Steve's smirk from a minute before.

Chin and Kono said their goodbyes and left the partners alone to bicker by themselves.


	14. Chapter 14

Alright. This is the last chapter that I have fully written. So up to this point I have posted a chapter a day sometimes more. I hope to be able to continue to post at that rate, but not sure...thinking of adding some hurt Steve. Anyone interested or should I start the wrap up?

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><p>"Alright Danny, it's time to eat. You didn't touch your food and don't tell me you aren't hungry because I can actually hear your stomach screaming that you are lying." Steve said.<p>

"I can't" Danny said with his eyes not meeting Steve's.

"What do you mean? I've seen you scarf down pizza like a dog afraid someone was going to take his food away." Steve said.

"No, you big jerk. I can eat, I just can't do it myself apparently." Danny said sadly.

"Well why didn't you just say you needed help." Steve said with hurt in his voice.

"You aren't exactly the most nurturing person you know. It's not easy for me to ask for help and then to ask for it from you is nearly impossible." Danny said trying to hide the annoyance in his voice.

"That hurts man. I will help you with whatever you need. Just tell me what you want me to do and I'm here for you partner." Steve said sincerely.

"Alright, how about the pizza. I'm starved." Danny said hungrily.

"Do you want me to cut it up or hold it for you or what?" Steve asked not knowing what Danny wanted him to do.

"I guess cutting it would be fine, I should be able to get the fork to my mouth, but I couldn't get the pizza there and then hold my arms up that long to actually eat it. That's pretty pathetic, huh?" Danny asked embarased.

"No, the doctor said your shoulder was pretty banged up and that paperwork says that you could have pain from the whiplash into your shoulders and even in your back. So we'll deal with whatever we have to until it's better, OK?" Steve said.

"Alright." Danny agreed.

Steve cut the pizza up and then helped Danny guide the pieces to his mouth when he needed it. They put on a TV show to reduce the awkwardness and they were able to just talk back and forth and ignore the fact that Steve was sort of feeding Danny.

After Danny was done eating, Steve collected the plates and brought Danny his medication with a drink. Steve had to search the kitchen for a straw, but he knew that he had stored some someplace for when Grace was here. He found one and popped it in the drink. Steve helped Danny steady the drink as he noticed that his arm was shaking slightly. Danny took a few sips and leaned back in the chair.

Steve gave Danny a few minutes to recover and then said "Alright, upstairs and into bed for you." Steve said.

"Aw but mom, I'm not even tired." Danny teased.

"The hell you aren't. You are going to lay down now in a bed, not on the couch and you are going to relax and get some sleep." Steve continued.

"And do I get a say here?" Danny asked.

"Nope." Steve grinned.

"Fine, but can I take a shower first? My hair is disgusting." Danny complained.

"We will see princess. Let's see how it goes getting upstairs first." Steve bargained.

Steve helped Danny up. Danny's face paled and creased with pain with the movement. Danny's knee protested. Steve had his arm around Danny's waist and was shouldering a lot of his weight, but Danny was still in a lot of pain when Steve remembered something.

"Hey do you think you can stand here for a minute by yourself? I'll turn the chair for you so that you can lean on it?" Steve asked nervously.

"Yeah, I think I can manage." Danny said.

Steve went to the hall where Chin and Kono had left Danny's things and grabbed his cane. He brought it back to Danny.

"Hey man thanks. I hadn't even thought about it when you were asking me what I needed. I hadn't been up yet and didn't know how much the knee really hurt." Danny said.

"No problem, now do you think it will hurt your arm too much to use it?" Steve asked

"Don't know till I try." Danny answered honestly.

"Sounds fair." Steve admitted.

"Let's go." Danny said.

Danny took a step with the cane, but was really shaky and unsteady. Steve was right by him, his arm around his back again on the opposite side that Danny had the cane in. Then they headed for the stairs. It took them a while and Steve could tell the pain that Danny was in after being up for so long. It had been a long day for both of the men. Steve knew Danny was tired and that the pain medication hadn't taken effect yet. When Danny stopped on the stairs to rest his body no longer able to fight the rigors and pain of the day, Steve took as much of Danny's weight as he could to help him to the top of the stairs.


	15. Chapter 15

Alright. I am taking the majority's advice and will leave the steve whump for another story...hopefully. This one still has a few more chapters so for all of you who are still hanging in there thanks...for those who are also reviewing thanks a bunch. I really hope that you enjoy the rest of the story.

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><p>"Steve, I need to take a shower. I feel disgusting. It makes me feel better. I will be fine and it will help me sleep. I'll be quick." Danny pleaded.<p>

Danny looked at him with those blue eyes and was almost begging. Steve couldn't say no.

"Alright princess let's get you cleaned up." Steve relented. It wasn't the work involved that bothered him, it was that he knew that Danny was already hurting and was afraid that this might make it worse. Steve had to trust that Danny knew what he was talking about though. If there was a possibility that it would make him feel better and help him sleep then Steve would help him however he could.

He helped Danny into the bathroom and asked him if wanted to shower or bathe. Danny answered that he would love a bath, but thought it might be too much work and would be fine with a shower. Steve helped him sit on the toilet and wordlessly started filling the tub as he shook his head. Danny tried unsuccessfully to take his shirt off.

"ughh let me help you with that Danny." Steve said not being able to watch Danny struggle. He held in the gasp that threatened to escape when he saw the bruising on Danny's shoulder. His whole shoulder and around to his back was almost purple with bruising. He hadn't really been able to see it when he was in the hospital. The doctor had said that it was bad, but he didn't really know how bad. No wonder he hurt and that was on top of the discomfort from the whiplash.

"Are you sure this isn't going to be weird for you?" Danny asked nervously. "I know this is a lot to ask." Danny continued.

"Seriously, what the hell is the matter with you? Do you think so little of me that you don't think that I could put that aside and help you?" Steve asked with more hurt evident in his voice than he meant to let out. He took a deep breath and started again. "Danny, you are my friend, do you really think I would make you struggle and cause yourself more pain because I might be uncomfortable helping you undress. I was in the SEALs Danny. Do you really think that you are the first guy who ever needed help with something like this? We didn't have a whole lot of options out there sometimes. You are my friend. It's not weird unless you make it weird. It's what friends do for each other. Would you do it for me? For Chin? Kono?" Steve asked.

"Well yeah. I might enjoy one a little more than the others though." Danny said with a smirk.

"So you get it. It's a friend helping a friend. Nothing more, nothing less. So no more about this, let's get you in the tub." Steve said as he finished stripping his friend. He put a towel over his front and helped him hobble to the tub. Steve helped him sit on the edge of the tub and then he grabbed him and lowered him into the tub not letting Danny most of the work so that he wouldn't aggravate his injuries. He propped him up so that he was sitting up with his back against the end of the tub away from the faucet,

"Bubbles, really McGarrett? You put bubbles in the tub?" Danny asked.

"Well just because it's a friend helping a friend doesn't mean that there can't be some camoflage used." Steve smirked.

"Damn, are you trying to boil me?" He yelled when he felt the temperature of the water.

"What? You are so sensitive. Just give it a few minutes. Trust me. Don't stay in too long though, because once the water cools your muscles with tense up again. Try not to drown while I go get some stuff. I'll be right back." Steve said.

Steve ran and got Danny's sleep clothes and a change of undergarments. Then he headed back in happy to see that Danny appeared to be relaxing a little. Steve let some of the water out and replaced it with hot water. He opened the shampoo bottle and placed it next to him. He sat on the edge of the tub.

"Danny, I'm going to take the brace off so that I can wash your hair OK?" Steve asked tentatively. He knew that Danny would be apprehensive of the pain. He had read the paperwork quickly though when they got home and he remembered that it said that the brace was for comfort and pain management and it was OK to take it off for bathing so he didn't have to worry about further injuring Danny, but more about his pain.

"OK." Danny said as he closed his eyes and gripped the edges of the bathtub in anticipation of the pain that he was sure that would come.

"Danny what are you doing?" Steve asked amused when he saw the position that Danny was in and that Danny was peeking at him through one half open eye.

"Well I am figuring that this is going to hurt and since you Rambo aren't exactly known for being gentle, excuse me if I am trying to brace myself." Danny said.

"What? I can be gentle" Steve said.

"Uh-huh. I'm sure." Danny said.

Steve decided instead of arguing he was going to show Danny. Steve was, after all, a man of action rather than a man of words like Danny. He held the brace while he slowly pulled the velcro closures apart being careful not to jar the detective's head. Once the brace was off he grabbed down the detatchable sprayer for the shower and started to wet Danny's hair. It was obvious that the detective had not been able to do a very good job on his own yesterday. Once it was wet, he added the shampoo. Steve then leaned forward and used his muscular tattooed arm to brace Danny's head back against his chest as he began to work the shampoo in. Danny closed his eyes and let Steve massage his head and lather the shampoo. Danny wasn't used to having someone else wash his hair. It felt nice. Usually he only got that done when he had his hair cut and then the barbers were never so gentle.

_Oh my god. I just described Steve as gentle. Damn he was right_. Danny thought.

Steve had stayed close to Danny and was being very gentle so that he didn't move Danny's head too much or cause Danny any pain. Then Steve rinsed it the best that he could continuing to support him and move as he needed . When they were done, Steve adopted the same head hold posture to dry his hair a little. The he dried his neck the best that he could and put the brace back on once he was sure that it wouldn't get wet and cause any skin problems for Danny. Then he helped lift Danny back to the edge of the tub, covered him with the towel and then helped him hobble back to the toilet. He helped him get re-dressed for bed, reapplied the ACE wrap to his knee which appeared slightly swollen and pulled on a pair of socks. Danny's eyes had been closed, but Steve knew that it was not due to embarrassment, but due to pain and the medication finally taking effect. Steve helped Danny to his feet and handed him his cane. He helped him down the hall when Danny stopped him abruptly.


	16. Chapter 16

Well here it is another day, another chapter...Hope that you still enjoy it.

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><p>"Hey, I may be pretty doped up right now, but I know that we are headed to your room and not the guest bedroom. I will NOT take your bed Steve." Danny said as he tried to turn to head for the guest room.<p>

"Danny, this is the best bed and it is the biggest so that you can really get comfortable. It has the best support and it has it's own bathroom in case you need to go during the night." Steve explained.

"But this is YOUR room Steve." Danny said.

"Yes, but for now, until you are better it is where YOU will be sleeping. I won't hear any arguments. Danny I have slept on rocks and in trees and in places much worse than on my guest room bed. I however do not have a messed up neck, shoulder or knee, which YOU my friend DO have." Steve said.

There was no way that Danny was getting around Steve so he gave in. He leaned on Steve while Steve pulled back the covers. Steve gently helped Danny lay down and get comfortable. He got him situated again and pulled the covers up. He put Danny's phone by his bed where he could reach it in case he needed Steve and Steve was out of earshot or downstairs. Steve had his in his cargo pants and would make sure he had it where ever he was.

"Thanks Steve." Danny said thankful for having Steve in his Ohana.

"No problem Danno. Try to get some sleep." Steve said

Danny was pulled into sleep and Steve went about his night-time rituals. He finished cleaning up, took out the trash, set the alarm and got in the shower. He stood in the shower letting the hot water fall over his tired body. He didn't know how the day had gotten so out of control. He continued to berate himself for everything that had happened to Danny. He wasn't going to let anything else happen to him. He was watching over him. He was going to take care of him. He would continue to show him that he cared. He got out of the shower, dried off, sneaked back into his room to quietly get a pair of sleep clothes for himself and got dressed. He checked on Danny once more before he went to sleep. Danny's knee had fallen off the pillow and was at an odd angle so Steve adjusted it, earning a pained expression from Danny. He left the door open, but turned the lights off before he retired to the guest room.

He awoke to noises coming from his bedroom then he heard his name being called. The voice was familiar, but the tone was one of pain. It took him a second to remember why he was in the guest room and that Danny was sleeping in his bed. He was still rubbing his eyes as he ran into his room. He hurried over to Danny's side.

"Hey Danno. You OK?" Steve asked.

"Hurts Steve. Damn it, it hurts. Ughh. I can't get comfortable." Danny said through the agony that he was feeling as he was writhing around on the bed frustrated and trying to escape the pain.

"What can I do Danno?" Steve asked feeling helpless.

"Can you help me move a little and then grab my pills." Danny said.

Steve was glad that he had sent Chin and Kono to get Danny's pills on their way over. Steve figured that the muscle relaxant should help him relax a little.

"OK. I'm going to help you ease onto your side." Steve said as he rolled Danny onto his left side. He placed a pillow between his knees so that there wouldn't be pressure on the knee that was already painful. Then he repositioned the pillows by his head and put some behind him to support his back and prevent him from rolling over.

"Thanks." Danny muttered feeling some sense of relief and comfort.

"No problem. Are you going to be OK for a minute? I want to run downstairs and get your medication." Steve said.

"I'll be fine." Danny said.

Steve ran downstairs and got Danny's medicine rushing back upstairs as he knew that Danny was in pain and he didn' t want to be the reason Danny had to suffer any longer than necessary. He helped support him so he could take the medication. Then he repositioned him to let him go back to sleep. Steve sat at the edge of the bed and rubbed Danny's back with one hand while yawning. He realized that he was pretty tired. Once Danny's breathing evened out and Steve was sure that he was relatively comfortable, he moved to the chair and puts his feet on the edge of the bed. He leaned back to go to sleep. He didn't want to go too far as he was sure that Danny was suffering for a while before he called for him. He wasn't going to let that happen again.

Danny woke up having to go to the bathroom. He opened his eyes. Sunlight was streaming into the room. He saw Steve sleeping in the chair near his bed. He smiled knowing Steve wanted to be there in case he had woken up again. He smiled thinking how lucky he was that he had a partner that cared that much. He looked up at Steve's face. He seemed relaxed. The frown line between his eyes had almost disappeared.

He hated to wake Steve when he was that relaxed so he decided to try to move on his own. He was able to move a little more than yesterday with some of the movement returning to his arms. He was able to move himself to a sitting position, but after he sat up he was dizzy. The room was spinning and he reached to grab onto the bed to steady himself, but instead was met by Steve's arms. Steve had woken up with Danny's movement and had seen him swaying when he sat up. Steve held him by the shoulders and steadied him until Danny was able to focus again. Then he scooted to the edge of the bed and got his feet on the ground. Steve offered Danny his arm and Danny's cane. Danny took the cane, but turned to Steve and said, "I want to try to see what I can do, so I'll use the cane, but don't go too far, OK?" Danny asked. Steve's reply was just a nod of acknowledgement.

Danny immediately felt the pain course through his leg when it touched the ground. Even without significant damage to the knee, it was still very painful. Danny knew the drill for his knee though. It was painful. It would be painful and he knew what he needed to do. Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. He knew it would be a while before he would be able to put all of his weight on his leg, but that it would eventually be OK. He leaned heavily on the cane, thankful that he didn't use it in the arm that had been bruised. Steve stayed at Danny's side the entire way to the bathroom then stood guard outside the door listening for the slightest sound indicating that Danny needed help. He never heard any of those noises. He only heard the toilet flushing and the sink water running indicating that Danny was done.

Steve followed closely to Danny ready to assist if there was the slightest indication that he was going to falter. Danny made it back to the bed without problem and then Steve helped him lift his injured leg into the bed and guided his head to the pillow so that Danny didn't have to strain. Once he was settled Danny said, "Alright. I am going back to sleep for a little while. No "normal" people are up at this hour by choice." he said.

Danny's remark was punctuated by the alarm on Steve's watch going off indicating it was Steve's normal waking time.

"Well since I'm already awake, I was thinking about going for a run if you think that you'll be Ok." Steve said apprehensively.

"Steve, I don't need a babysitter. I have answered nature's call, I'm settled in bed, I'm not due for pain meds for a while, and I have my phone right here in case of an emergency mom...thanks." Danny said annoyed.

"I'm serious Danny. I can wait and run later when Chin or Kono are available to come over." Steve said.

"I DO NOT NEED A BABYSITTER. I am a grown man and I am just going to sleep. Go for your run. You need to do something to work off your Rambo adrenaline." Danny said annoyed.

"Fine, but I will have my phone so call me if anything happens." Steve said.

"Nothing is going to happen super-Seal. Cool your spidey senses and have a nice run." Danny said.


	17. Chapter 17

Ok here is where the story changes from my original plan thanks to input from all of you. Sometimes the smallest most ordinary things can have a big impact. Let me know what you think...

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><p>Steve got changed and went for his run. He had a lot to think about. He decided to stay close to the house and took a run on the beach instead of heading to any of the mountain trails that he liked. He wasn't really running for the challenge, he was running for the peace that he needed to think. He ran through the natural paths of the neighboring yards and took in the fragrance of the native hawaiian flowers. It was a beautiful morning as the sun was just rising. He really loved living here. He was only minutes from the house when he started thinking about how he was going to get through the next few days. He wanted to be able to figure out how he was going to help Danny and how he was going to take care of Gracie. He kept flashing to the look of pain in Danny's eyes. He wished he could take the pain away from Danny, but since he couldn't do that he was going to do his best to take care of him. Danny was a man of movement. He paced, he ranted, he gestured, he stalked, but he did not rest. He was not a man who was good with resting.<p>

When Danny tore his ACL last time, he came to work right from the doctors with his cane and hobbled around keeping up with Steve pain be damned. This was a little more serious. He needed to keep Danny safe so that he could visit with Grace and so that he could get better without the lingering chronic pain syndrome that he had seen before with men in battle who just ignored the pain. The things that they had to do sometimes on a mission and the hand to hand combat could all easily lead to whiplash symptoms so he was no stranger to the effects of them or how debilitating the pain could be. He had seen many a teammate suffer.

Danny fell asleep and managed to get some decent shut-eye before he awoke again. He heard Steve coming in the door. Then he heard Steve puttering around in the kitchen no doubt starting coffee and breakfast. It took him a long time and he was really starting to hurt again, but he managed to sit up. He scooted to the edge of the bed. He stood up and took a deep breath to control the pain. He took a few wobbly steps and went to the bathroom to relieve himself again. He was on the way out when he heard Steve in the bedroom looking for a change of clothes.

"Hey Danno, looks like you're doing a little better." Steve said happily from the doorway.

"Yeah, still hurts like hell, but seems like I can move a little more." Danny said as he grabbed the edge of the footboard of the bed with white knuckles.

"Well I was going to hop in the shower, but do you want to head downstairs first. I would rather be with you when you did that. You know, just in case." Steve said.

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. I don't really plan on taking a tumble down the stairs again though" he said. He wasn't exactly all that upset that Steve would be around to help him considering the pain he was in from walking less than 10 feet from the bathroom. He wasn't planning on telling Steve that though. He was sure that his face more than conveyed the pain that he was in, he didn't need to go making public announcements or anything.

Danny got himself slowly to the stairs. He used his cane leaning heavily on it as well as using the wall. He had just stepped off the last step and onto the wooden floor when his knee tried to buckle. Steve of course was not going to have any part of that and was there in a blink of the eye keeping him steady. He stood there and supported Danny while he tried to work out the cramp in his knee. As he got closer to Danny trying to adjust his hold, Danny groaned louder.

"Where the hell did you run?...Did you run through a flower garden?... You reek of flowers." Danny said between ragged breaths and through gritted teeth.

Just as he finished saying it, he realized he was in trouble. Then it happened. He felt the tingle in his nose. "Oh shit!" he said knowing what was to come as he started to sneeze. The floral scent or the pollen or something had triggered his allergies causing the violent sneezing attack. Now he was in a world of pain that he couldn't even imagine. With each sneeze his head was shaken and pain shot through his body. Steve's arms were the only thing that stopped Danny from becoming a writhing pile of tortured muscle on the floor. By the third sneeze, he was almost in tears. Of course if anyone asked they were from his allergies.

Steve didn't know what he should do. He wanted to keep Danny upright, but he was triggering his allergies.

"Damn it... McGarrett... get the hell away... from me. You're... killing me here." Danny said angrily. The pain was beginning to be more than he could take. His eyes were squeezed shut. He wanted to get away from Steve, but at the same time he was clinging to him because he was his lifeline. There was no way that he could stand by himself, let alone move. He could feel himself about to pass out and he tried to steady his breathing.

Steve felt the change in Danny and grabbed him and all but carried him to the couch. Steve then ripped off his shirt that had the offending fragrance on it and tossed it away, hoping that the other clothing articles were farther from Danny's nose and wouldn't offend as much. Then he got next to Danny and tried to use his body to brace Danny's for the next sneeze which would hopefully be the last now that the shirt was gone.

After the last sneeze, Danny tried to collect himself, but he hurt so much he could barely breathe. Steve ran and got his pills and some water and put on a clean shirt.. He held the cup to his mouth and fed him the pills in because Danny was shaking so badly there was no way he would be able to do it on his own.

Danny just sat there with his eyes closed and his face lined with pain. Steve got behind him and laid his hands gently on Danny's shoulders. He could feel the rigid muscles and the knots within his partner's muscular shoulders. Danny's muscles were all taut with tension in a constant state of spasm now. Steve laid his hands on Danny's shoulders trying to clam the angry muscles. He was waiting to see if Danny was ok with what he was doing. The last thing he wanted to do was make Danny more tense because he was uncomfortable.

Steve went around to the front of the couch and repositioned Danny so that he could be as relaxed as possible with his legs elevated and his neck and back supported then resumed his position near his head. He rubbed his hands together and then put them on Danny's shoulders and began to gently massage them. He could feel the muscles spasming under his hands. He used firm yet gentle circles to start then continued to use longer strokes while being careful of too much pressure on his severely bruised shoulder. He went slow letting Danny's shoulders get used to the pressure with each new movement and position that he used. Danny groaned and Steve froze.

"If I'm hurting you, I can stop Danny. I was just trying to help. I'm sorry. I didn't know what else to do to help you. The paperwork from the hospital said that massage might help with muscle spasms and pain." Steve said apprehensively.

"No, it's OK. Felt good." Danny asked.

"Are you sure? It also said that ice or heat might help. Do you want to try some heat first?" Steve asked.

"Don't know. Can try. Don't think it can get worse?" Danny said still trying to keep his breathing in check.

Steve went to the closet and got the heating pad. He laid it on Danny's shoulders. Steve took off the neck brace while Danny's neck was supported so that he could wrap the heating pad around Danny's neck.

After a few minutes Danny relaxed a little as the heat attempted to release the vice grip that was being tightened on his neck. Once the muscles were warm and more pliable, Steve put his hands gently back on Danny and began to massage at the painful muscles. He kept it up for a while feeling the muscles loosen and Danny relax. It took a long time and Steve's hands and arms were getting tired. There had been no banter between them. There was only the occassional moan or muffled cry of pain from Danny. Steve all of a sudden heard a different noise from Danny. He heard soft snoring. Steve carefully placed the brace back on Danny's neck and put a blanket on him.


	18. Chapter 18

Just a filler chapter. Hope you still like it. Grace shows up next chapter...Should be interesting. Keep the reviews coming. They keep the chapters coming...

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><p>Danny woke up on the couch. He still hurt, but it was definitely better than it was before. He looked around for Steve, but didn't see him. He eased himself up and called out for him.<p>

"Steve, hey Steve, where are you?" he called out.

Steve came walking in the room. He had showered and washed his clothes being sure that there was no lingering scent of the flowers on him to aggravate Danny's allergies.

"So how do you feel Danno?" Steve asked with genuine concern in his voice.

"Better. Where did you learn to do that?" Danny asked. Danny knew that he had to choose his words carefully as he was sure that Steve once again was feeling guilty for his part in adding to his pain so he decided instead to concentrate on the positive part where Steve had helped him.

"It's class..." Steve started.

"Don't you dare tell me it's classified. Steven McGarrett, it's just a simple question. I don't need to know specifics. I just want to know where you learned skills like that?" Danny said.

Steve stopped and thought for a minute. "Alright. Let's just say that I was injured and had recurrent muscle spasms and cramps and learned how to take care of them with massage. I didn't always have access to pills or heat or ice or any medical technology for that matter, but I always had my own hands. I learned that they were often the best remedy." Steve said.

Danny pouted at him.

"What?" Steve asked innocently. "I answered your question." he said knowing that Danny wouldn't be satisfied with the minimal information that he had supplied.

"Well that's just not fair. You told me that you were injured. Now my curiosity is peaked. I want to know how and why and where." Danny whined.

"I told you it was classified." Steve said like restating it would make it all better.

"Fine deprive the injured. That's real nice Steve." Danny tried.

"I warned you." Steve retaliated.

Danny winced a little as he readjusted on the couch.

"What's wrong Danno? You OK?" Steve asked already at his partner's side.

"I'm fine. I bet it's nothing that a little information couldn't fix." Danny said with a smirk. He just couldn't help himself.

"Fine. Play dirty. I guess it wouldn't be divulging any secrets to tell you that I was hurt and and damaged my thigh muscle pretty badly. I would get muscle cramps and spasms all the time. Sometimes it would be so bad I couldn't stand or walk. I couldn't be on the medication all the time because it made me foggy and I couldn't always be running to my therapist to work it out especially when there was no knowing when it was going to strike. So I learned some techniques and used them when I needed to. Usually just for my leg..." Steve explained.

"Wow. I didn't know that. Does it ever bother you anymore?" Danny asked trying to keep his eyes off of Steve's legs while he was trying to decide if he had ever noticed anything. He knew though that if Steve didn't want him to know about it, he wouldn't have seen anything.

"No not really. Every once in a while after an especially long mission or if I take heavy abuse to the area. It seemed to be worse in the cold weather which is why I don't feel it too much here I guess." Steve said.

"Well thanks anyway. It really does feel a little better. Do you think maybe we could get out of here for a little while? I'm going stir crazy. All I do is sleep. Even if it is just to go to my apartment and pick up some stuff for when Gracie comes. I just need a change in scenery. What do you say?" Danny asks.

"I could just get you what you want and bring it back." Steve said.

"Come on Steve. It's just to my apartment. It's just easier for me to look around and see what I need. I can't think of everything that we might need, but if I was there I would know." Danny said with a spark of mischief in his blue eyes.

"Fine. Just to the apartment, but if I see you in pain, I'm bringing you right home even if it means I have to put you over my shoulder and carry you here...AND do not get any ideas about staying there. I AM bringing you back here." Steve threatened.

"Alright. Deal. I promise no funny business." Danny promised knowing that Steve would actually carry out that threat if he needed to.

"Well do you want to go in your jammies or do you want to put on some pants?" Steve teased.

"Ha ha. Grab me a pair of pants and let's go." Danny said.

Steve grabbed him a pair of sweats and helped him change and then helped him to the car.

Steve drove them to Danny's apartment in the camaro.

"So what time do I pick Grace up on Friday? Steve asked. He hoped that talking about Grace would help lift Danny's spirits.

"She gets out of shool at 4:00" Danny answered.

"Alright. What do you want to do while she's here? Has Rachel told her anything about you being hurt?" Steve asked.

"I don't think so. I'll have to feel her out when I talk to her later." Danny said.

"Well it's not like you are going to be able to hide it from her." Steve said. "I mean I know that she is only 8, but she is very observant and might notice the neck brace and the fact that you are moving like a robotic 80 year old man with a cane." Steve teased.

"I am hoping to be rid of the brace by then and maybe the cane too, but she's seen the cane before so that won't really bother her." Danny said.

"The doctor said you could ween the brace after a week. It won't be a week yet then." Steve tried to rationalize.

No answer came from Danny.

"Friday is the day after tomorrow. Do you really think that you will be that good by the day after tomorrow?" Steve asked doubtfully.

"I don't know, but I can hope, right? If it doesn't work I will deal with it then" Danny said.

"Sure, I just don't want you to try to rush things and be frustrated when your body doesn't heal according to your schedule." Steve explained.

"And I don't want my daughter to think that her father is always getting hurt at work. It's bad enough that she knows what I do, I don't want her to be afraid all the time. That worked so well for me with Rachel" he said sadly.

"Danny we will deal with it when we have to. For now, let's keep you rested and relaxed and see where we go from there OK?" Steve said.

"Fine, now help me get some of Gracie's stuff that she will need." Danny said.

Steve didn't wait to be asked this time to help him out of the car, he was there and ready right away. Danny walked slowly, but by his own power and then worked on the stairs. _Damn__stairs__. __If __it __weren__'__t __for __falling __down __these __damn __stairs __things __might __not __have __gotten __so __out __of __hand__. __I __could __have __explained __the __neck __injury __to __Grace__, __but __in __combination __with __the __injuries __from __falling __down __the __stairs__, __it__'__s __too __much __for __her__. __Maybe __I __would __have __even __been __better __by __her __visit__. __Ughh! __I __hate __these __stupid __stairs__. _Danny thought.

He stopped a few times on the stairs. He had a death grip on the railing and Steve was right behind him, but stairs were always hard with a knee injury. Then to not actually be able to look down to see the step compounds the problem. Up is a little easier as you can wait until you have your foot placed and secure before pulling your weight up. Down on the other hand you have to hope for the best. He knew that Steve was there though and knew that Steve would rather throw himself down the stairs then let Danny misstep and hurt himself.

They finally made it into the apartment and Danny sat on the edge of the pullout which was still in the same position as when he had crawled out of it before ending up in the hospital.

Steve looked around in horror. He never understood how Danny could live like this. Steve was a Navy man. Things were in order. Everything was in its place. He was about to give Danny hell and make not so nice comments when he looked at Danny's face. Pain and exhaustion clearly written all over it. Instead, he walked over to him, and helped him lay down. He put pillows under his knee and supported his neck then found the blanket and threw it over him.

"Steve, this is my apartment. I am capable of getting the things that I need." Danny said in mock protest to Steve making him lay down. The truth was that he was exhausted and he hurt and he actually felt a little better like this.

"Rest. I am capable of gathering the things that you want. If you want to get better or try to fool Grace or whatever it is that you think you are going to do then you are going to listen to me. Now you lay there and tell me what to get. First start with where I can find a suitcase or a duffle bag or something." Steve said not really leaving room for Danny to argue.

"Fine. There should be a bag on the top shelf in the closet in Grace's room. If it's not there then it might be on the floor in her closet or in the closet out here. Try her room first" Danny suggested.

Steve couldn't believe Danny's system, but he did as he was told. Steve straightened up as he went. He made Grace's bed, put away the toys and dolls, hung up her clothes, wiped tops of furniture and straightened items on top. They went through the list of things that Grace would need and then Danny asked for some things. By the time they were done, Steve had been through almost Danny's whole apartment and it was clean or at least not messy. Steve was satisfied that when his friend came home that he wouldn't have to worry about that sort of stuff. He had also taken inventory of the fridge contents as well as pantry items to see what Danny would need for his return. Even if his neck was better he didn't want him carrying heavy bags up the stairs if he didn't need to. Steve had gotten all the dirty clothes as well and was going to take care of that at his house since he figured it would be a while before Danny would be lugging laundry baskets around. Danny had fallen asleep while Steve had finished cleaning. The last thing that Steve needed to do was strip the pullout and re-make it with clean linen.

Danny opened his eyes and looked around. Steve the energized bunny had cleaned his apartment. He couldn't remember it looking so tidy since he had moved in. "Steve, what happened to my place?" he asked with a grin.

"I hope you don't mind. I just straightened up a little. I didn't want you to come home and have to do it." Steve said honestly.

"Mind? Hell, I may have to hire you." he joked.

"It might not hurt to hire someone. When was the last time you cleaned up?" Steve asked.

"You don't want to know." Danny admitted.

"Alright sleeping beauty, are you ready to go?" Steve asked.

"Sure, let me hit the bathroom and we can head out." Danny said.

He winced with every movement and groaned as his knee protested moving after being stationary for such a long time. The sofa bed was low and soft and Danny had a hard time getting up. On his third attempt, Steve stepped in and boosted him up and onto his feet. Danny swayed a little, but found his footing and headed to the bathroom. While he was in there, Steve stripped the bed and re-made it.

"Seriously Steve, you even cleaned the toilet? There is something wrong with you. Normal people do not just clean other people's toilets when they are visiting." Danny yelled from inside the bathroom.

'Well I am not just any old ordinary person. I am a highly trained Navy SEAL who could not let an injured teammate return to living quarters that were like that. Besides, I am not just visiting. The governor ordered me away from five-0 to help take care of you. So I considered it part of the job. But do not get any ideas. I will NOT be making a habit out of it." Steve smirked.

Danny looked at the neatly made bed that quarters could be bounced off of and just shook his head. Steve was not able to do things half way. He even took bed making seriously. He grinned though thinking again how glad he was to have Steve on his side.

They made it down the stairs with Steve helping Danny. Steve had remembered Danny's pain medication, but it wouldn't be working for a little while. Steve got Danny situated in the car and went back up and down a few times to get all of the stuff that they had wanted to bring as well as bringing the trash out to the curb and grabbing the laundry.


	19. Chapter 19

Grace's Visit...Let me know what you think.

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><p>The ride back was quiet. Steve was tired from a full day of cleaning and Danny was just tired from existing for the day even though he had spent a good portion of it in bed.<p>

Steve helped Danny back into the house and right upstairs to bed. Danny was once again tired as the pain medication took over. He gave in to sleep and Steve went to make dinner.

Danny woke a little while later to the smell of Steve's cooking. It smelled good. He took his time and got up from bed. The pills were still working and had taken the edge off. At some point Steve had come in and put the heating pad on his neck and shoulders as well, but must have recently taken it off as it was still on the bed and very slightly still warm.

He wandered to the hall and started down the stairs. He was only down a few steps when he saw Steve.

"I am capable of walking around Steve. I'm feeling a little better. That massage really helped earlier." Danny said once he got off the stairs.

The next day passed in much the same fashion with Danny trying to do too much and Steve trying to stay one step ahead of him to stop the stubborn detective from injuring himself. Danny was getting around better. Some of the mobility had returned to his arms. His shoulder still hurt if it was touched or if he tried to do anything that required effort from his arms. He had started going for short periods without the neck brace only to be rewarded with pain, but he had to be sure that he could do it for Grace.

Friday came and it was time to get Grace. Steve cautioned Danny to stay home while he went, but Danny insisted on coming. Steve knew that it would be too much for Danny so while Danny was in the bathroom, he took off. He left him a note saying he'd bring Grace home right after they picked up some things for dinner. As he pulled up to Grace's school, the little girl spotted her father's camaro right away and came bounding toward it. She saw Steve step out of the driver's side and then looked around for Danny.

"Where's Danno?" Grace asked worriedly.

"He's at my house waiting for you." Steve said. He decided to keep his answers short to avoid having to lie, but to honor Danny's wishes at the same time. Grace knew a little since Rachel had told her that Danny had been in a very minor accident. They both had agreed to keep Danny's work out of it.

"Mommy said he was in an accident. Is he all better?" Grace asked.

"He's getting better everyday Grace and he can't wait to see his little monkey." Steve said.

The rest of the ride was relatively quiet. Steve asked about Grace's day and she talked about the latest gossip of the third grade.

They went to the store to get some items for that night and then they entered Steve's house. Grace immediately looked for Danny.

Danny was sitting upright in the high back recliner chair with his head against the back of the chair. He had angled it so that he could see her when she came in. Grace ran to jump in her father's lap, but Steve caught her mid fly. He was upset to see that Danny had chosen to take off the neck brace. Steve gently placed the little girl in Danny's lap being careful of his injured knee. She reached around to give him a hug and Steve quickly moved her arms that were aiming for his neck to his chest. Grace had not been in the house for two minutes and had already unknowingly attempted two maneuvers that would have put Danny immediately out of commission. Steve groaned thinking that this was going to be a long weekend.

"Are you feeling better Daddy?' She asked.

"You bet monkey. I'm always better when you are around." he said sincerely.

"Can we go for a walk on the beach Daddy?" Grace begged.

"Not right now Gracie. Let's see how the night goes. Maybe after dinner, OK?" he said.

"Well what are we going to do now?" Grace asked.

"Well Steve said he is going to help you make pizza. Then we are going to have movie night. We picked up a bunch of the new movies and popcorn and ice cream with all the toppings so we can have a big party. Tomorrow Kono is coming and is going to go surfing with you and then we are going to have a BBQ. It's going to be a lot of fun." Danny said hoping that this plan would be ok with Grace because it allowed him to stay home and not have to move too much, but still enjoy time with his daughter.

"Now go upstairs with Steve. He will show you where you are going to stay tonight and get changed out of your uniform." Danny said as he grabbed Steve's visual attention and gestured toward the cord on the floor hoping Steve would get what he was saying.

He took the opportunity while she was upstairs to put on the heating pad which he had hidden behind the pillow in the chair and wrap it around his neck. He also flexed his knee a little trying to make sure that it didn't stiffen up. It wasn't too stiff, but wasn't very happy about not being elevated. He swallowed a few ibuprofen. He sat there and let the heat penetrate his shoulders and neck and hoped Steve would keep Grace upstairs for a little while.

Steve managed to keep Grace upstairs for almost 20 minutes. Steve made a lot of noise on purpose so that Danny would know that they were coming. Danny managed to get the heating pad sufficiently hidden again and had stood up before Grace came in the room. Steve's SEAL eyes saw Danny had the cane nearby, but was holding onto the back of the chair hoping that he wouldn't have to use it. Hey Grace, why don't you go get the stool from the bathroom closet upstairs and bring it down, that way you will have something to stand on to help me with the pizza. As she ran off, Steve handed Danny his cane and watched him make it to the kitchen. He sat in a straight back chair that had a high back. It was not that comfortable, but would be better than sitting on a stool. Steve positioned it so that Danny would be able to see them and join in the pizza making just as Grace bounced back into the kitchen.

Danny was noticeably quiet, but surprisingly Steve filled the void with plenty of chatter so that Grace barely noticed.

When the pizza was ready for the oven, Steve sent Grace back upstairs to put the stool away and to change and wash her face and hands as she was covered from head to toe in flour. It was quite cute, but she was a mess.

The added chore gave them a little more time. Time that it was obvious that Danny needed. He made his way to the couch leaning heavily on his cane and Steve. As Grace came back, he was starting to feel the effects of not having the brace on for several hours. His neck was tired and pain was running rampant through his body. He was starting to break out in a sweat and was subconsciously clawing at his knee trying to make the throbbing stop.

Steve noticed. He told Grace to come with him. They went upstairs and grabbed a bunch of pillows and blankets. They were going to make a fort for her to watch her movie in. As they made it back downstairs the oven timer went off. The pizza was done. They took it out. While it was cooling Steve got out some tray tables and paper plates. He grabbed a beer and some water. He debated cutting Danny's pizza up, but decided against it. Danny had eaten ok this morning and he hoped he would be alright now. Steve helped Grace build the fort. He built it in front of the TV so that Grace's view of Danny was obstructed. Steve was not happy with the way that Danny was looking the more the night wore on. As soon as the fort was up and Grace was playing in it and shielded from view of Danny and engrossed in the latest princess movie, Steve went to work. He gave Danny his medicine. He did cut Danny's food so he could finish it. He brought the ottoman around so he could elevate his knee and gave him an ice pack. He put the ice pack on Danny's knee and threw a light blanket over his lap just in case Grace crawled out. Then he plugged in the heating pad and put it discretely under Danny's shirt so that Grace wouldn't notice it right away. Danny was in a t-shirt not his usual dress shirt, but it was fairly covered and could be shifted lower to keep it out of sight if necessary. Danny and Steve wordlessly had an entire conversation. They both had very expressive faces, but Steve especially. He could have an entire conversation just with his eyes. The partners were used to communicating this way as often in the field they were unable to talk. Danny usually relied on his gestures more. They were the experts at decoding the others unspoken communication. Danny with Steve's faces and Steve with Danny's hand gestures. Although subdued from the pain, Danny was able to get across to Steve when he was feeling better. Steve unplugged the heating pad and walked behind Danny to give him a quick massage. The entire time Steve's eyes were laser focused on the little girl's fort and watching for the slightest movement from within. After a few minutes, Steve stopped as Danny was snoring softly. He took the ice off his knee and returned it to the freezer and the blanket to the couch.

He walked around to the front of the fort. "Hey Grace. Danno fell asleep. What do you say to an ice cream sundae before bed?" he asked in a whisper.

Grace followed him in an exaggerated tip-toeing maneuver to the kitchen. They had fun making the ice cream sundaes and then it was time for bed. Danny was still sleeping in the chair. Steve knew he needed to get Danny upstairs to bed, but couldn't do that until Grace was in bed and asleep.

"Hey Grace. What do you say we head upstairs and get ready for bed?" Steve asked.

Grace stopped. She looked over at her dad for a minute and then just stood there. She was obviously trying to ask Steve something.

"What is it Grace. Is something wrong?" Steve asked worried. He was afraid that she might have a stomach ache or something from all the crap that they had eaten tonight. He knew that meant that they were in trouble. ALthough he was not great with kids, he usually did alright with Grace. He did not know if he had it in him to deal with a sick Grace though. That was definite Daddy Danno material and Steve knew that Danno was definitely not up to dealing with it. He waited while Grace formed her answer.

"Uncle Steve you stay here. I can do it myself...If you are upstairs with me who is going to help Danno when he wakes up?" she asked.

Steve didn't want to give away anything so instead decided to see exactly what the 8 year old was talking about. "What do you mean help Danno, Grace?" Steve asked.

"His neck is hurting him. Why isn't he wearing his brace. I saw it under the chair. I know he thinks I don't know about it, but I do and I wish he would wear it if it makes him feel better." She explained.

Steve was shocked and didn't know how to respond. Luckily for him, Grace kept talking. "We learned about neck injuries in my first aid class at school and mom told me that he had hurt his neck and then I saw the brace and I knew. I also saw his cane Uncle Steve. I haven't seen that in a long time. I knew his knee was hurting too. Danno hates that cane so I knew that he would only have it if he really needed it." Grace said.

"You are really too smart to be only 8 you know." Steve said with a grin. "You must have gotten some of your father's detective abilities." he said. His heart was breaking that this little girl had been so perceptive. Despite their best efforts, she had figured everything out very quickly and had played along to spare Danny's feelings. She couldn't be any more of a little copy of Danny if she tried. He was smiling to himself.

Grace interrupted his thoughts. "Uncle Steve, why doesn't he want me to know?" She paused and then said, "I do know though. I know that he is hurting. Daddy has been sitting almost all night. Daddy doesn' t sit still. He likes to move like me. Mommy always says something about us both having ants in our pants. When he hurt his knee, he sat a lot of the time too. I can help you take good care of him. I promise..." she said with a sniffle.

Steve grabbed the little girl into his lap and gave her a big hug. He didn't know if what he was about to do was the right thing or not. He didn't have a lot of experience to go on. He remembered what Danny had always told him about going with what felt right as long as it didn't involve firearms or grenades or anything else that went boom.

"Grace, Danny didn't want you to worry. He wanted to be strong for you." Steve explained.

"But Danno always tells me to tell the truth. He's not telling the truth now." she said softly.

This was starting to be too much for Steve. He did the best he could. "Grace, Danny didn't lie to you. He WAS feeling better and the doctor told him he didn't have to wear the brace ALL the time this technically wasn't a lie), but I think he was so worried about you worrying and hurting you that he didn't take good care of himself." Steve said. He thought for a minute. "Let me talk to him Grace. I'll explain it to him so he understands and tomorrow, you can be the best nurse for him ever, OK?"

"OK Uncle Steve." she agreed. Then she said, "Tell him that I won't worry. Mommy told me not to worry because Daddy was very lucky. He had the best partner who would always look out for him and take care of him." She paused again then said, "That's you Uncle Steve. You help keep Daddy safe and take care of him." Grace said with the love and thanks all at once as only the daughter of Danno Willams could.

That was it. Steve was now officially seconds from losing it. This was more than he could take. He always knew that he would do everything that he could to keep Danny safe to come home to his little girl, but to hear it from Grace was making him emotional. He could feel the tears trying to surface. He took a deep breath. "Yes Grace, I do everything that I can to keep him safe. When accidents happen, no matter how or why they happen, we take care of each other, that's what ohana is about." Steve said. He was starting to really understand now. He was trying to process everything that had just happened. Rachel had said nice things about him, Grace knew that Danny was hurt and probably had a better grasp on everything than anyone else did.

"Alright Grace, go get ready for bed. Your father and I will be up in a little bit so that he can tuck you in and kiss you goodnight." Steve said.

"OK Steve, see you in a few minutes." Grace said as she ran up the stairs.

Steve watched her go up the stairs and headed over to Danny. He was going to have some words with him and his stubbornness let alone making him have that conversation with Grace.


	20. Chapter 20

Here is the next chapter. Wasn't sure that I would make it in today, but somehow managed. Sorry for any errors. Hope that it lives up to the other ones...Your reviews keep me going. A chapter a day is hard...but I will do my best.

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><p>Steve walked over to the chair where Danny was sleeping. He woke Danny gently. He didn't want to startle him and make him hurt himself. As he got closer he could see the sweat on his face and the lines of pain around his eyes. Danny opened his eyes and looked at Steve. "Hey, I must have fallen asleep. Those damn pills. What time is it?" he asked as he reached up to wipe at his eyes.<p>

"It's 8:30" Steve said.

"Grace? Where's Grace?" he asked worriedly.

"Relax she's fine. She's upstairs getting ready for bed and waiting for her Danno to tuck her in." Steve said.

Danny went to get up, but Steve put his arm on his shoulder gently, not wanting to hurt him, but trying to keep him in the chair. Danny winced at the pressure.

"Sorry. That was your bruised shoulder, huh? Sorry." Steve quickly pulled his hand away and apologized when he realized that he was the reason for Danny's wincing.

"It's fine." Danny said shrugging it off. "Why are you holding me down though?" Danny asked confused.

"Danny you can't go upstairs until we talk." Steve said with seriousness laced in his voice.

"Steve. I have to go to Grace. God knows it is going to take me long enough to get there as it is without you keeping me here any longer. Whatever it is can wait until I get her to bed, OK?" Danny said agitated.

"Danny, stop. Just stop. I need to talk to you ABOUT GRACE." Steve said.

Danny turned his head and then immediately regretted it. Pain spread through his body. Steve was at his side. "Take it easy Danno. Hey, just relax." Steve said soothingly.

"What's the matter...with Grace?" Danny asked through his pain.

Steve reached under the chair and grabbed the brace that Danny had stashed under there. He rubbed his shoulders and neck for a minute then put it back on Danny's neck gently, hoping that it would finally allow Danny to relax his neck.

"I don't need that AND I have to go tuck Grace in." Danny tried to reason.

"YES you do need it and if I were you, I wouldn't go to tuck Grace in without it unless you want your daughter to think that you don't trust her." Steve said hoping that he could get through to Danny. Danny stopped trying to get the brace off and looked pleadingly at Steve.

"Steve. OK. I have no idea what you are talking about. Can you please let me know what is going on. What are you talking about?" Danny asked.

"Danno listen, I don't want you to get overly excited so listen to everything that I am saying before you freak out, OK?" Steve said gently. He knew that he was about to break Danny's heart.

"Fine...fine. Whatever you say, just tell me what is wrong with my little girl." Danny pleaded.

"There's nothing wrong with her. I just had a conversation with her that we need to talk about before you go upstairs." Steve said.

"Alright, out with it." Danny said inpatiently.

"OK. Grace thinks that you are lying to her and that you don't trust her." Steve said and then closed his eyes hoping to not have to see the look that was going to be on Danny's face and to brace for the rant that was sure to come.

"WHAT? Why the hell would she think that? What the hell did you say to my little girl Steve? I take one short nap and leave her alone with you and now she hates me. What the hell happened while I was sleeping Steve? I swear to god, if you said anything to my little girl to make her feel that way I will never forgive you. Do you understand me? Never." Danny was yell whispering. It was an art that he had perfected with Rachel when they were arguing and didn't want Grace to overhear.

Steve opened his eyes and looked into Danny's eyes that were filled with fear and anger and pain, both emotional and physical. He couldn't believe that Danny thought so little of him that he thought that he would say anything bad about him to Grace. Steve was hurt, but Grace was waiting upstairs for Danny so he would have to deal with that later. Right now he needed to finish explaining to Danny so that he could get up to that little girl and make things right.

Danny saw the flash of hurt that Steve let show momentarily before he replaced it with the stoic one that Danny remembered so well from their early days of partnering. Steve broke his thoughts when he started to explain.

"Danny, Grace asked me why you were hiding your injuries from her. She knew that your neck hurt. She told me where you had stashed the neck brace because she saw it under the chair within 10 minutes of being here. She also saw your cane hidden and knew your knee was injured again. I think the only thing she doesn't know about is the bruising and that would only be a matter of time. She is smart Danny. She is really smart. She knows that you are hurt and doesn't understand why you were hiding it. She said that you weren't telling the truth. She just wants to help you. I tried to explain that you didn't want her to worry, but that you were strong and would be OK. She said that Rachel had talked to her about not needing to worry about you. She was more hurt that you hadn't trusted her to help you. She's waiting for you upstairs. I told her that I would talk to you so that you understood what a good nurse she could be and that she could watch out for you like the rest of your ohana." He said not showing any emotion.

"Oh god Steve what did I do? I thought that I was protecting her and I just ended up hurting her. My little girl doesn't think that I trust her and that I was lying to her. What kind of father am I?" Danny said trying to hold in the tears.

"The kind that was trying to protect his daughter. Now let's get you upstairs so that you can tuck that little girl in." Steve said stoicly.

"OK." Danny said. He tried to get up and Steve was by his side. He helped him to his feet, gave him his cane, slipped his arm around his back and helped him up the stairs to where Grace was in bed and waiting.

Steve left him at the door and turned toward the guest room. "Goodnight Grace." he said as he stepped in to give Grace a hug and then to Danny without making eye contact, "Give me a yell when you are done if you need." With that he turned and walked away giving the father and daughter time to discuss things privately.


	21. Chapter 21

Sorry I didn't get this chapter out yesterday. I had a massive migraine and computers and migraines don't really mix that well. So here is yesterday's chapter and I am almost done with today's so I should have that up later tonight...Enjoy and review. I really do enjoy everyone's thoughts.

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><p>Steve walked down the hall to the guest bed room. It was strange to be sleeping there. He still wanted Danny to have his bed. He knew how much better it was than the couch or the guest bedroom. He wanted Danny to sleep well and get better. Even if Danny didn't think so, Steve really did care and wouldn't hurt either of them for anything. He would die first.<p>

Danny sat down gingerly on the bed to talk to Grace. The girl looked nervous at first. She came up to him and touched the brace. "Does it make it feel better Daddy?" she asked in a voice that was little more than a whisper.

"Yeah monkey, I guess it does." Danny admitted.

"Why didn't you want me to see you wearing it?" she asked him, her eyes wide and curious.

"Grace, sometimes things are complicated. I am sorry I didn't tell you everything. I have always told you that the truth is the only way to go and I should have been completely honest with you. I know that you are getting older everyday, but that is hard for me to remember sometimes." he said with a sigh.

"Daddy. I don't like it when you don't tell me things. I don't want any secrets Daddy." she said her big brown eyes looking into Danny's blue ones.

"I know sweetheart. No more secrets. I promise. I just didn't want you to be scared. I thought it might be scary for you to see your Dad hurt. I didn't want you to worry everytime Daddy went to work that he was going to be hurt or something even worse. I never want to be the reason that you are upset or hurt." Danny explained.

"I know that your job is dangerous Daddy, but I know that you superstrong. Mommy told me that you were partnered with Uncle Steve so that he could keep you safe and that he would never let anything happen to you. She said that Uncle Steve loves you like you love me. She said that Uncle Steve was Ohana and that he would always be there for you so I didn't have to worry so much. Kono and Chin too. Mommy was right this time, huh Dad? I know you don't always agree with Mom, but she was right. Uncle Steve does take care of you. He's been taking care of you since you got hurt." Grace said as she looked up at her father and smiled.

Danny listened to everything that his little girl had just said. It was crazy that it took her saying it for him to realize it. He was sad when he thought of his last conversation with Steve and remembered what he had said. He had really hurt him. Danny knew that Steve would never say anything bad about him to Grace. He told him that he would never forgive him. Well now he had to hope that Steve would forgive him. Danny wasn't sure that he deserved forgiving though. Everything that Steve had done for him over the last few days and this was how he thanked him. If it wasn't for Steve, Grace wouldn't even be here. He wouldn't have gotten to see her.

"Yes Grace, Steve has been taking very good care of me, but I think that he could use a helper so that must be you. I am sorry that I didn't tell you the truth monkey. That will never happen again. I can't promise you that I won't get hurt again. Actually I can probably bet that I will with Steve as my partner, but I promise to always be truthful with you when I am, ok honey?" he said to his daughter.

"OK Danno. I'm glad that Steve brought me here for the weekend. Even if you are hurt, I don't care. I just didn't want to not see you. It made me sad." she said as she went to give him a hug and corrected herself and gave him a belly hug instead.

"Me too Grace, me too." Danny said to her as he stood to pull the covers over her. He sat back next to her and rubbed her back. It didn't take her long at all to fall asleep. Once he was sure that she was asleep he stood up. He took a few minutes to try to get his body to cooperate with him. He reached in his pocket for his pain medication, but he must have left it downstairs. He figured he would grab something out of the medicine cabinet in the bathroom, but first he wanted to go apologize to Steve for treating him like he did. He managed to get himself out of Grace's room and close the door behind him. He walked toward the guest bedroom, surprised that the door was ajar as Steve never slept with the door open. Danny realized that he probably did it so that if Grace or him had trouble during the night he would hear it and be able to go help them.


	22. Chapter 22

Time for a little more hurt for Danny...I can't help myself...you guys still interested?

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><p>He stood in the doorway watching the slow steady pattern of Steve's breathing and was amazed at how at peace the other man looked. Steve was generally a serious guy who carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. Asleep though, his shoulders relaxed, the lines around his eyes softened and the corners of his lips turned up ever so slightly giving the faintest hint of a smile. Danny didn't have the heart to wake him when he was that peaceful. Danny limped silently the few steps to the end of the bed and pulled the blanket over the sleeping man. Danny knew that Steve probably hadn't slept too well since all of this had happened anyway.<p>

He leaned against the wall trying to pull himself together and fight the pain. He slid his body along the wall. He was so tired and was hurting so much that taking the steps to get back to the bed was like running a marathon. He made his way to the bathroom and managed to find a bottle of ibuprofen. His hands trembled as the pain started to overtake his body. He dragged himself back to the bed. He toed off his shoes, managed to strip his pants and laid down on the bed. He was not comfortable though. Then he realized that the past few nights, despite his protests, Steve had managed to arrange the pillows so that they supported his neck and knee and relieved the pain. Another of those things that he had taken for granted that Steve had done for him over the past few days. He closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep.

The ibupofen barely took the edge off. He was uncomfortable and wasn't able to sleep. He tried everything he could. It didn't help matters that he couldn't seem to stop replaying the conversation with Steve over and over in his mind. He knew that he had been too hard on Steve for no reason really. He hadn't even let him explain himself. He had just started yelling. After he talked to Grace though, he realized he not only owed Steve an apology, but he also owed him thanks. He had covered for Danny and had smoothed things over with Grace. He made her understand why he didn't tell her. He was going to take care of that as soon as Steve woke up. He owed him that. He was still in pain though and he couldn't stop it. If Steve was awake, he might actually consider asking Steve to use his massage techniques, but there were several things that were wrong with that idea. Steve was asleep, Steve didn't know how much pain he was in,AND Steve was barely talking to him. He needed to apologize, Steve needed to forgive him and then he could ask. This obviously wasn't going to happen in the next few minutes. It was time for Plan B. He was now in pain and seriously tired. He needed the stronger pills downstairs. He didn't know what to do. He was pretty sure that he wouldn't be able to get there himself, hell he was pretty sure that in this shape he wasn't even going to be able to get out of bed by himself. He could call for Grace. She would love to help, but what kind of father wakes their 8 year old up in the middle of the night to get them their drugs. He couldn't bring himself to call Steve. He would just have to settle for a few more ibuprofen. He went to get out of bed, but in the process he knocked his cane out of reach. He reached for it, but couldn't quite get it. He reached a little more and then he lost his balance. He slid down the side of the bed to the floor, grabbing for the dresser and knocking the lamp to the floor with a crash. He cried out in pain. Well he no longer had to worry about who was going to get him his medication as he heard someone yell "Steve". It took Danny a minute to realize that the someone who had yelled was him.


	23. Chapter 23

Steve's turn. I have a problem. I just can't help myself. It will all work out. You will see soon...

Review and let me know.

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><p>Steve heard the crash. It took him a minute to remember why he was asleep in the guest room fully clothed. He had a blanket on him and he had no idea how it got there. He remembered Grace and grabbed for his gun when he realized it was downstairs locked up because Grace was here and his spares were in his bedroom. He jumped out of bed and flew down the hall to her room. He was still half asleep and was wiping at his eyes as ran out of his room. He opened the door slowly and cautiously to Grace's room and found that she was still sound asleep with her music playing softly next to her. She was snoring gently which seemed strange for such a small girl, but then again Danny snored like a lumberjack so he wasn't all that surprised. He thought for a second when he heard his name. This time he was more awake and realized it must have been Danny. He remembered the conversation with Danny earlier and what Danny had said. He knew that Danny wouldn't be calling for him if it wasn't an emergency. He walked in cautiously not knowing what to expect, but already thinking of all the places that he had weapons hidden in his bedroom. He walked in to see Danny sitting on the floor. His injured leg was out in front of him and he was rubbing his knee. His head was slumped slightly, but still in the brace and his eyes were closed.<p>

Steve shouted "Danny, Danny..." and ran and knelt down in front of him.

Danny slowly opened up his blue eyes that were filled with regret, apology and raw pain. He looked Steve right in the face.

"Danny, are you OK?" Steve asked with sincere concern. His eyes were wide and his face showing worry.

"Steve... I'm sorry... I owe you an apology... and a thank you." Danny started through his painful breaths.

"Hey Danny. I haven't done anything yet. Usually you save the thanks for after someone has actually helped you." he said trying to ease Danny's pain.

"You have. I'm not talking about this. I'm talking about Grace. I should never have said what I did. I trust you with Grace's life Steve. Thank you for being there for her and talking to her. It seems you said everything that she needed to hear." he said fighting to get his breathing under control.

"I tried Danny. I know I'm not a father, but it was what I would have wanted to hear if my father had been hurt when I was her age." he said honestly. "You must know I would never say anything bad about you to Grace." Steve said the hurt in his voice still evident.

"I do Steve." Danny said quietly.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" Steve asked and was met with a disgusted look from Danny.

"OK, OK, I mean are you hurt anywhere new? Can you get up?" Steve asked as he was taking quick inventory of Danny probing for further injuries.

"No, nothing new, but the old stuff is bad right now. I don't think I can get up...myself." Danny admitted as he cast his eyes down.

"Alright. Well it's a good thing that your partner is here then, huh? Let me help you. I'll take most of your weight. You push with your good leg. On three." Steve said.

They worked together, but Steve basically lifted him into the bed. He propped him on the pillows like he had done the previous nights. He put a pillow under his knees. Danny could already feel the pain starting to lessen as the pressure was relieved. He thought that it was ridiculous that something so simple could make such a big difference, but it did. Despite his stoic nature and general lack of social skills, it was the little things that Steve did that made a big difference. He may not be good with words or comfort, but he did get the job done and he always did it well. This was just another example. Steve had to get Danny comfortable and he managed to know just how to do it. He didn't always have comforting words, but he did things the way Steve knew how and for Danny that effort was good enough.

"So what the hell were you doing anyway? How did you end up on the floor?" Steve asked breaking the silence.

"I was trying to get to my medicine downstairs. The ibuprofen I found in your bathroom didn't cut it. When I tried to get out of bed, I knocked over my cane. I tried to get it and wound up on the floor." Danny admitted embarrassed.

"Danny there are so many things wrong with what you just told me. I know that ranting is your thing but..." Steve started.

"I do NOT rant" Danny interrupted.

"As I was saying...first, I'm pretty sure I told you to call for me when you were done talking to Grace. Second, you came in the room to put a blanket on me so you could easily have woken me up to get your pills or TO TELL ME YOU NEEDED HELP. Third, I have no idea how you even made it in here, considering the shape that you were in downstairs. Fourth, once you finally got into bed and couldn't sleep, I don't know what made you think that you would actually be able to get downstairs. Finally and most importantly, I don't know why you didn't just call for me. Damn it Danny, I thought that we got over this." Steve said.

"I knew you were upset about what I said to you. You were barely talking to me. You had every right to be mad, I was out of line. I wanted you to give you some time. I wanted to apologize to you, but I wasn't going to wake you up to do it. Not when you haven't had a good night's sleep since I first got hurt." Danny said.

Steve turned away from Danny. He didn't respond to what Danny said. Danny knew that he was wrong. He apologized, Steve knew Danny had been ranting in the heat of the moment. He was sure that Danny didn't mean it, but still it had hurt when Danny said it. Steve loved that little girl as if she was her own. He would certainly kill or be killed to protect her. Steve didn't need to make Danny feel bad so he accepted his apology knowing full well that he himself had on more than one occasion said something that he hadn't meant that had hurt someone.

Danny turned and tried to put his arm on Steve's arm, but he had a spasm. He hadn't had one in a few days and he wasn't prepared for it. He gasped in pain and clawed at the covers on the bed. Steve knew he needed to calm him and then he needed to get him his pain medication. He got next to him in the bed and worked on his neck a little feeling his taut muscles slightly relaxing. Steve knew there was only so much that he could do though.

He got Danny somewhat calm and then he ran toward the stairs to go get his pain medication. He was half way down when he heard Danny moaning again. He figured another spasm had hit. He knew Danny was overtired and his muscles were fatigued and he was probably dehydrated making him more prone to the spasms. Steve couldn't remember him drinking very much at all today. Steve knew that dehydration was a reason for muscle spasms and could easily be prevented and corrected. He fought internally whether he should go back to Danny or go to get the pills. He decided on getting the pills as he kept running down the stairs. He took the corner and almost knocked over the vase that was on the landing, he over corrected and lost his footing. He made it somehow upright down the rest of the steps, but as he turned quick to avoid the plant at the bottom of the stairs his sock only clad feet slipped and he found himself himself catapulted forward toward the floor unable to stop himself.


	24. Chapter 24

Like I said, I just couldn't help myself. Hope that you will continue to enjoy it anyway. Review and let me know. To those of you who feel that I have ruined the story, I am sorry. It's just where it went in my head and I had to go with it. Thanks for sticking with me this long and those of you who continue to read, thank you for your reviews. They make me keep going...

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><p>Steve put his arm out to brace himself, but hit the floor full force on his outstretched arm. He felt the pop in his arm and he rolled onto his side immediately grabbing at his left arm. He knew what had happened and it wasn't good. He tried to look at it, but he couldn't get a good got himself into a sitting position and backed up against the wall. He sat there for a minute as the agony washed over him. He let go of his arm and let it lay in his lap. The pain shot through his arm and almost left him breathless. He quickly grabbed his arm again and held it close to his body. The slightest touch was threatening to push him over the edge into blackness. He sat there panting and grunting as quietly as he could. He quickly used his legs and back to slide himself up the wall and painfully to his feet. He leaned against the wall willing his vision to clear then he went as quickly as his weary body would let him to get Danny's pills. He grabbed the heating pad as well and some water. He grabbed his phone out of his pants. He called Kono.<p>

She picked up on the 3rd ring, not very happy since it was very late or really early, it depended on how you looked at it. "Hey boss, what's going on?" She asked through a yawn as she picked up the phone and saw Steve's picture.

"Kono, I need you to come over." Steve said trying to keep the pain at bay. He knew that he wasn't doing a very good job because he could hear the tone of her voice change and he heard the worry shouting through the phone although Kono had barely spoken.

"What's going on boss? Is Danny OK? Did something happen to him?" She asked concern evident in her voice.

"I need you to stay with Grace." Steve said as calmly as he could trying not to exude the pain that was getting worse by the minute.

"Boss, what's going on?" She asked anxiously.

"Need to do a hospital run" he explained trying to keep his voice steady.

"What happened? Did Danny hurt himself more?" she asked almost panicked.

"No. No Kono, Danny is fine." he reassured her.

"Then who's going to the hospital?" She asked as the idea that he might be hurt hadn't actually crossed her mind until just then. With Danny hurt, he was her first thought.

"Me. It's nothing serious. I hurt my arm and I have to get it checked, but I don't think it should wait until morning." he said unable to hid the pain in his voice any longer as he shifted his weight and the pain shot though his arm again.

Now Kono heard the pain in his voice. She was taken aback. He was the one calling so she just assumed that he was OK. If Steve was asking to go to the hospital though, she knew it had to be bad.

"Alright Steve, hang tight, I'll be there as soon as I can." she said as she was already slipping into her pants. "I'll grab Chin too. You are going to need a ride. He can take you and I will stay with Grace and Danny. See you soon. Take it easy boss. We'll be there soon. Just sit tight OK?" She said as she ended the call with Steve and hung up to dial her cousin.

Chin answered almost immediately. He was a very light sleeper. "What's up cuz?" he asked as he was trying to clear his voice.

"Steve just called me. He's hurt and needs to go to the hospital. He wants me to stay with Grace and Danny and he needs you to drive him. I'm on my way. I'll be there in 10, OK?" she said.

"Wait, what? Steve is hurt? What happened over there? I thought that he was supposed to be relaxing with Danny and Grace for the weekend. Is he OK?" he asked worriedly.

"He said that he hurt his arm. He said it wasn't anything serious, but needed to have it checked and didn't want to wait until morning." She said.

"We both know that McGarrett's definition of not serious and the definition that the rest of the general population has is not the same so who knows what we could be looking at. Since it hadn't been that long since his arm had healed Chin hoped that he hadn't re-injured it. Alright, I'll wait for you outside. See you soon." Chin said.

Kono picked Chin up and the two of them headed toward Steve's house expecting the worst, but hoping for the best.

Steve tried to bite back the pain. He was doing his best to keep it together so he wouldn't worry Danny. He took his arm and hooked his hand through the waist of his pants pulling his belt tight to keep it secured. He headed upstairs. Each step jostled his arm and agony took over. Steve bit down so hard on his lip he tasted the bitter mettalic taste of blood in his mouth. He grit his teeth and was clenching so hard that he had given himself one hell of a headache as well. He was hoping that it was dark enough and that he would be distracted enough that Danny wouldn't notice him not using the injured limb.

Steve finally got to the room. He took a minute to steady his breathing, wipe the sweat from his forehead and try to put on his best face. Danny was laying on his side away from the door with his eyes closed. Steve put down the bottle of water and the pills and then went and sat at Danny's side, rubbing his back gently with his uninjured arm. He was glad not to find Danny in agony when he got back and hoped that he had not actually had another spasm while he was gone.

"Danny, you need to take the pills and then try to get some sleep." Steve urged.

Danny opened his eyes took a sip of the water and swallowed his pills. He leaned back onto the pillows wordlessly.

Steve walked slowly to the nightstand keeping his uninjured side toward Danny so as not to rise his suspicions. He wanted to make sure that Danny's phone was there, on and charged in case he needed anything. As he walked back by Danny, Danny reached out to grab his arm to say thanks. Danny unknowingly grabbed his injured arm and Steve let out a cry of pain. It came right from his gut and was a sound that although Steve had closed his mouth hit Danny right in the heart. Steve cradled the arm close to his body and fell onto the bed. He grunted and was muttering some curses under his breath while he was rocking back and forth sitting on the edge of the bed.

"What the hell?" Danny asked. "Steve are you hurt?" Danny continued. What happened? I barely touched you." Danny's voice was escalating.

"Damn it Steve, answer me. What is wrong?" Danny asked panicking.

Steve attempted, but failed to steady his breathing. "I...hurt...my...arm." He again took a few deep breaths and then was able to continue. "It's no big deal. Chin is on his way over to take me to the hospital to have it checked out. Kono is coming too in case Grace or you need something."

"Yeah, no big deal, I bet. You have to be dragged to the hospital when you are shot, SHOT Steve, and you are telling me that you are having Chin take you to the hospital in the middle of the night and you want me to believe that it is no big deal? I don't think so. Come closer so I can see. Don't make me get up. One of us in the hospital at a time is all they can handle." Danny said trying to keep himself in check.

Steve moved closer to Danny and Danny turned on the bedside light. "Jesus McGarrett. It looks like you are smuggling a golf ball in your elbow. What the hell happened?" Danny demanded.

"I fell." Steve said simply as though that explained everything.

"Where? When? You were fine a few minutes ago when you helped me off the floor. You wouldn't have been able to do that if your arm was like this." he said.

"I was rushing and I made the corner on the stairs too fast. I made it down the steps, but then wiped out when I hit the floor. I put my arm out to catch myself, but landed on my arm and I think I dislocated my elbow." he said.

Danny sighed. "Damn McGarrett. Wait, damn you did this trying to rush to get me my pills and get back to me didn't you?" he said with guilt evident in his voice.

Steve just nodded.

"That looks like it really hurts. You OK man?" Danny asked. "You want one of my pain pills?" Danny asked honestly.

"It will be better once they put it back in. It hurts like a SOB. I'm going to go grab my old sling. I think that might help. I don't want to take anything in case they have to give me something to put it back in. Thanks though." Steve said.

He grabbed his sling from the bathroom and then went back to Danny. "Hey man can you help me with this?" he asked. The strap had been undone after Steve washed it before he put it away.

"Yeah, I think I can manage that." he said. He threaded the strap through and then helped Steve into it and snugged it up.

"When are they coming?" Danny asked.

"Should be here in a few minutes?" Steve said.

"I don't need a babysitter you know. But thanks for thinking of Grace. Call or text me if it's anything worse, OK?" Danny asked.

"Sure partner." Steve said.

Steve sat on the bed next to Danny and within a few minutes Danny was breathing regularly and was sound asleep. Steve had given him a heavier dose than Danny normally took. The doctor had told Steve it would be OK when they originally left the hospital, but until now he hadn't had to use it. He hoped that Danny would sleep while he was at the hospital.

He made his way painfully downstairs. He had just grabbed an ice pack and put it on his arm in the sling when he heard Chin and Kono pull up. He met them outside.


	25. Chapter 25

Thanks all of you who have reviewed. I appreciate them so much... You guys are great. I can play the story in my head whenever I want, but it is the reviews that make me try to put the story into written words...

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><p>"Hey man, you OK?" Chin asked.<p>

"Nothing major. Hurt my arm. Need to get it looked at." Steve explained

"Is it your forearm again? Do you think you re-injured it? Kono asked.

"No, it's my elbow. It think it is dislocated. I need to have it popped back in and then I'll be fine. Hopefully it shouldn't take too long." Steve said.

"Did Danny finally get tired of you hovering around him and rough you up?" Kono asked with a smirk.

"Nah, nothing that exciting or funny. Danny is in no shape to be fighting with anyone. A kitten could take him right now." Steve said. Then he continued. "He overdid it, tried to be tough for Grace and is paying the price. Gave him an extra dose of the good stuff and he's passed out right now. He should sleep for a while. Hopefully, I'll be back before he wakes up." Steve began.

"He's in my bed and Grace is in Mary's old room. There's food in the fridge. Danny's pills are on his nightstand." Steve explained. He isn't due to have them again for at least 4 hours and I should be home by then. I should be back, but just in case, Grace will probably be up around 7 or 8. If you hear her and can get her downstairs for breakfast so she doesn't wake Danny, that would be great. Thanks guys. I really appreciate it." Steve said. He was gently craddling his arm. He had flinched a few times as he moved and jostled his arm. He was starting to break out in a sweat from the pain. His other hand was fisted. His eyes were dark and filled with pain. He was starting to sway a little as his vision was blurring.

Chin read his body language without too much difficulty. He put his arm around Steve's waist and guided Steve gently into his SUV which he and Kono had driven over in. They drove to the hospital mostly in silence. Chin could tell that Steve was doing everything that he could to keep the pain at bay and not lose it. It was OK. Chin didn't need chatter. He enjoyed having silence to think and repsected Steve enough not to bother him just to chat when he was clearly in pain. Steve would let out a little moan as Chin hit bumps and curves in the road. He pulled his arm closer to him and leaned forward slightly in an attempt to protect it and keep it from being jostled. Chin helped Steve out of the car and steadied him when he started to sway. Chin guided him into the ER before he went to move the car. Steve was checked in. They waited for him to be seen. Steve's pain was escalating by the minute. The pain was getting to him and he was worried about Danny. He knew that Kono could handle it, but he couldn't help but worry about Danny.

Finally he was called in and given some medication for the pain. Chin helped him out of the sling. Chin was taken aback at how swollen Steve's elbow was. Steve had x-rays taken checking for adjacent fractures or injury. It appeared as though it was a simple posterior dislocation. Chin was escorted out for when they were putting the elbow back in place. Steve was given something extra for the pain when the elbow was put back into its correct location. They told him that he would be in a protective splint and the sling for a week while everything healed up. The technician came in and brought the casting supplies. They put on a protective cotton sleeve and measured the fiberglass bandages and then molded them to the bottom of his arm. It extended from more than half way up his arm below his arm pit to his wrist and was only on the bottom surface of his arm. It was held in place and smoothed by hand. Once it was hardened, it was wrapped with ace bandage from just below his arm pit to his wrist to keep it in place. It made it look a lot worse than it was. It was a hard shell to provide protection and support. He was placed gently back in the sling. They gave him more medication and took follow-up xrays which showed that he was back in alignment. He was released into Chin's care with discharge instructions and a script for pain medication and told to return if there was any problem with the arm or loss of sensation or pulses.

Steve was tired. He was tired from the medication. He was tired from the pain. He was tired from worrying about Danny. He just wanted to sleep. He put his head against the passenger window in Chin's SUV and closed his eyes. He slept through the entire ride home. Chin had stopped at the pharmacy and had picked up some malsadas for breakfast as well as some fruit. Steve still slept. Chin called Kono and gave her the heads up that they were coming. She got the guest bed made up and ready for Steve. Danny and Grace were still sleeping. Chin pulled in the driveway and helped Steve out of the car and into the house. He was still half asleep and pretty goofy from the pain medication. Chin smiled at him. It was odd to see Steve like that. He got him upstairs and into the guest bed. He pulled his shoes off and pulled the covers over him. He left the door open a little. With that Chin turned and left the room. By the time he got back downstairs Kono was asleep on the couch. Chin sat in the recliner, kicked back and joined the snooze party.


	26. Chapter 26

Our boys are slowly waking up. Danny first...please read and review.

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><p>It was quiet in the McGarrett house for a while before Chin heard noise upstairs. He checked his watch. It was 8 am. He listened to the soft footsteps. He woke Kono. "Hey cuz, I think Grace is awake. Let's get her before she wakes the sleeping bears." he said.<p>

"I'll go." she said and was upstairs before Chin had even gotten out of the chair. He watched enviously at how easily Kono went from sound asleep to fully awake and moving with fluidity and ease, something that was for the young and Chin was reminded that he wasn't as young as he once was. He had to smile as he saw the two of them tip-toeing down the stairs. Kono with her one finger to her mouth keeping Grace quiet. They went to the kitchen and sat at the table.

Chin started breakfast as Grace questioned them.

"Good Morning Uncle Chin. What are you and Kono doing here? I thought that the BBQ was not until dinner time." She said.

"It is. We came over last night. Steve got hurt last night while you were sleeping. I came over to take him to the hospital and Kono came to make sure that you and your dad were OK while Steve was gone." Chin explained.

"Is Uncle Steve OK? Did bad men try to hurt him?" Grace asked nervously. "Is he still at the hospital? Can we go see him? He'll be really lonely without his Ohana." she said firing the questions off.

"Yes, Grace. Steve is OK. No it wasn't bad men. It was bad socks." he said as he chuckled at his own joke. He looked over at Grace and was pleased to see that the corners of her mouth had turned up in a smile. "He slipped after coming down the stairs and fell on his arm. He hurt his elbow so he has a hard splint on it, it's bandaged and in a sling, but he is OK. It looks like he has a mummy arm. You can see him later. He's not at the hospital anymore. I brought him back a while ago. He is sleeping in the guest room right now. Both your dad and Steve need to get as much sleep as they can so that they can heal. So we are all going to be their big helpers, OK?" Chin explained.

The three of them had breakfast. Chin dished some out for Danny and Steve for when they woke up, then cleaned up the dishes and pans while Kono played with Grace.

Chin put away the last of the dishes and finished wiping the table when they heard movement upstairs. Chin and Kono exchanged a look.

"It's probably Danny. Why don't we go Grace?" Kono said.

"OK. Daddy said I could help him today. He said he knew I was going to be a good nurse." Grace said proudly.

The two girls made their way upstairs to Steve's bedroom and shut the door behind them. Danny was sitting up at the side of the bed.

"How's Steve?" he asked.

"Dislocated his elbow. They reset it and he's got it in a hard splint and it is ACE wrapped to keep the splint in place. He will be in a sling for a week, but should be fine. He's sleeping and is heavily medicated at the moment." she explained.

"Good, that's what he figured. Of course Steve would be able to diagnose himself. I'm surprised he didn't try to put it back in by himself. Speaking of sleeping, how long have I been sleeping?" he asked.

"Quite a while. Are you feeling better?" Kono asked.

"Yeah. I am actually. I'm a little surprised after yesterday, but I really slept last night and that must have helped." he said.

"Hey monkey. Could you grab me my cane from over there?" he asked.

"Sure Daddy." Grace said as she grabbed his cane from the floor and happily handed it to her father.

"Alright. I'm going to try to get up." he warned.

"First, why don't you take your meds." Kono suggested. She figured that she had a better chance of him taking them with Grace there to help her plead her case.

"Fine, but not the stuff Steve gave me last night though. Just the regular stuff. I know he gave me the strong stuff and more than I usually take. That must be why I slept so soundly and for so long. I guess I needed it though." he admitted regretfully.

Danny stood at the side of the bed. Kono came around to his other side to help steady him.

"I'd like to take a shower before I go downstairs. Do you guys think you could help me?" he said.

"Maybe I should get Chin" Kono said nervously.

"No I don't need actual help. Well I don't think I do at least. Could you guys get my clothes and stuff together? Grace you could sit outside the door and talk to me to keep me company and that way if I do need help, I can let you know, OK?" Danny said. He remembered that first bath after he got hurt and how much help he needed from Steve and hoped it wouldn't be like that again. He had showered since then, but wasn't sure of his body after yesterday. He felt better today, he really did and he hoped that he would feel even better after the shower. He didn't want to let Grace down again.

"I can do that Danno, but we have to be quiet. Uncle Steve is hurt and needs to sleep." She said.

Danny headed into the bathroom. He sat at the edge of the tub and started to undress. He was down to his boxers when there was a knock at the door.

"I have your stuff Danno." Grace said.

"Alright. Let me grab a towel and then you can bring it in." Danny said as he covered himself and his daughter came in and left his supplies on the counter top by the sink.

"Thanks Grace." he said.

He took his boxers off and swung his legs into the tub. He picked up the detachable head for the shower and started to wash himself. When he was ready, he took off the neck brace and gently washed his hair. He tucked a towel around the brace before he put it back on to keep it dry. He pulled his shirt over his head then realized that he did need some help. Getting his boxers, pants and socks and shoes were harder because he couldn't really look down and his knee didn't cooperate that much with being bent to where he could see. He knew Grace was outside the door.

"Hey monkey, could you go get Kono for me?" he asked.

"Sure Daddy, I'll be right back." Grace said.

She quietly went and got Kono and brought her back to the bathroom.

"Hey Danny, what's up?" she asked.

The door was open and Danny had a towel wrapped tightly around his waist. He had his t-shirt on already and still had the towel tucked in around the brace.

"I could use a little help here." he said as he gestured at the remaining clothes and shoes.

"Sure thing." she said.

She pulled his boxers on, then his pants. She left both just above his knees. He was able to stand up, he loosened the towel, but still had Kono hold it in front of him and she looked away as he pulled them up. Then she dried off his feet and put his socks on. She put his shoes on and then asked Grace to come and tie his laces. Grace was happy that she was going to be able to help. Then he went to take the brace off and remove the towel. He gave it to Kono and asked her to help him dry his hair. He braced his head against the wall while she gently dried his hair. She was gentle, but it still was far from comfortable. But the pain was nothing like what he had the other day. The heat from the shower, the medication and the good sleep last night had really paid off.

He stood up and headed for the stairs with Kono and Grace right beside him. He was moving slow and still limping even using the cane, but he did look better.

"I'm starving. Do we have anything to eat?" Danny asked hungrily as he walked into the kitchen.

"Sure do, brah." Chin replied. He pulled out the plate of food from breakfast and gave him some malsadas from the bag that he had picked up knowing that they were Danny's favorite.

"Hey thanks man. This is great. I really appreciate you guys coming over to help me with...Grace." he said but they all knew what he meant.

He finished his breakfast and made his way outside. He just wanted to sit outside and watch his little girl play in the yard. She could go in the water later. It was after lunchtime. Kono and Chin had both dozed off for a while after they had eaten their sandwiches.

He moved his knee a little and winced. He tried to put it through some motions to get it moving, but it was pretty stiff. He tried moving his neck gently. It ached, but the sharp pains weren't there. He asked Grace to get him some ice for his knee and the heating pad for his neck. Sitting outside was nice, but sitting too still was making his knee cramp up and the slight breeze coming off the water was making his neck ache. She ran quickly and returned with the supplies. Then she went and got him some pillows too.

"How's that Danno?" she asked.

"It's great monkey. I feel better already. Can I ask you one more thing Grace sweetie?" he asked.

"Sure Danno, what do you need?" she asked.

"Could you get me some water. I need to take my medicine." he said.

He pulled the pill bottle out of his pants pocket where he had put it before coming downstairs earlier. He didn't want to take the pills, but they did help with the pain and he knew that Steve would be getting up soon and he wanted to be able to help him if he needed it and that meant that he had to be in the best shape that he could be in.

Chin woke up and rubbed his eyes. He looked around and noticed that Steve was still missing. He decided to go check on Steve. Even medicated, Steve should be up. Chin had no idea how little he had actually slept since Danny got hurt and didn't know how badly he really needed the sleep.


	27. Chapter 27

Ok for those of you who were upset with Steve's absence last chapter have no fear he is back in this chapter and not feeling too hot. He needed to rest last chapter. After all even superSEALs need to rest sometimes. Next chapter will be back to the two of them. Enjoy and REVIEW! Sorry, I had computer issues last night. I lost 1/2 of this when I went to post it so I had to rewrite. Not as happy with it as the original, but that's the way it goes.

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><p>Chin went to check on Steve. Steve was always an early riser and since it was already after lunch and Steve was still asleep, Chin thought he should check on him. It was Steve after all and he could get into trouble sleeping, so the concern was not unfounded.<p>

Chin opened the door slowly not wanting to wake Steve. He was surprised to open it and find that Steve was wide awake and just laying in the bed.

"Hey Steve, you OK?" Chin asked not particularly liking his overall pale coloring.

"Yeah, I'm fine Chin." Steve tried to reassure him, but his voice betrayed him.

"Sure you are." Chin said with a smirk. "The team is all here. Everyone is downstairs. You up for some socializing or would you rather just have some peace for a little while longer?" Chin asked worried by the pale complexion that was not the SEALs normal coloring.

"Nah, I think I'm ready for company. How's Danny? And Grace? Does she know where I was last night? He asked guiltily. He didn't want to be part of the reason that Grace was worrying.

"Danny is fine. He actually seems to be doing a little better today. He took a shower this morning and Grace and Kono helped him. He's sitting in one of the chairs outside watching Grace." Chin said happily.

"How's his pain?" Steve wanted to know.

"I am sure that he is having some, but not that he has been letting on. He did ask Grace for something to drink earlier so that he could take his medication. If he's staying on top of the pain it shouldn't get too bad. He's taking it easy too. He is wearing his brace and using his cane. He's been sitting in the chair and just watching. Nothing strenuous. He's putting Grace to work. She is thrilled to be his 'helper'. I'm sure that she is going to love helping her Uncle Steve too." Chin said hoping to raise Steve's spirits.

"What does she know about last night?" he asked worriedly.

"She knows that you hurt your arm and that you had to go to the hospital to have it fixed. She knows that it was an accident and that you were sleeping up here and that you were going to need her help today." Chin said.

"Nah, I should be fine." he said and to prove his point he tried to lift his injured arm and was thanked with a jolt of pain that made him even more pale, if that was possible, and stole his breath.

"Brah, that wasn't very convincing. I wouldn't try that in front of Danny unless you want the world's longest rant on your hand. Even Grace would see right through that." Chin laughed.

"Grace was getting impatient waiting to see you. I think that she needs to see you for herself to make sure that you really are OK. She must get that from her father. He wasn't as vocal about it, but I could sense his anxiety about seeing you." Chin told him quietly.

"Chin, you don't have to stay here. Really, Danny and I should be able to manage. I'm sure that you and Kono have better things to do." Steve said.

"No, we're fine. We were coming over for the BBQ later anyway. We will probably leave later either together or one at a time to go get changed and go to the store to get whatever we still need for dinner. We'll see how the day goes OK? It's still early and you haven't even gotten out of bed yet. How about we start there?" Chin suggested as he walked toward Steve and pulled the covers down.

"Sounds reasonable." Steve said. He swung his legs around and went to sit up. He pushed up with his good arm. He was overcome with pain. It started in his arm and then it exploded through his body. He curled onto his side and into himself. He tried to muffle the cry of pain, but it was loud enough for Chin to hear. If he hadn't quieted it, Danny, Grace, Kono and probably the neighbors would have all heard it. Chin was at his side immediately. He put his hand on Steve's shoulder. He tried to get him into a sitting position because he was stuck somewhere between sitting and being curled up.

"OK Steve, just breath." Chin said. "It's OK. I'm going to help you. Tell me what happened, OK." Chin said. He didn't want to prolong Steve's pain, but without knowing he risked hurting him again.

Steve couldn't catch his breath right away to be able to form words to give Chin an explanation. He took some deep breaths and then opened his eyes. He had scrunched them shut immediately when he first felt the pain.

After a few minutes, he said, "I'm OK." He was still panting slightly, but sounded a little better.

"Alright, let's take it easy. Nice and slow. Maybe you should have some pain medication first." Chin said irritated at himself for not remembering to bring them with him, but he wasn't expecting Steve to be awake.

"Later...Can't wait...Need to go to the bathroom." Steve said.

Chin looked at him sympathetically. He offered him his arm and Steve took it willingly. He was not a fool regardless of what other people thought.

Chin helped him to his feet slowly and carefully. Steve had his jaw clenched. He wasn't saying a word and Chin knew that he was blocking the pain to do what he needed to do at the moment so didn't push him to talk. Steve was swaying from the dizziness and pain. Chin managed to keep him upright, and they were able to take care of business. Chin noticed that he was limping slightly as well as not fully straightening up. He helped him to the edge of the bed and then went to get his medicine.

"Hey guys Steve is up. He'll be down in a minute. Grace do you think that you could help Kono set up a chair that would be comfortable for Uncle Steve with a few pillows and maybe a light blanket too." Chin asked.

"Sure, Uncle Chin." the little girl said with a smile. She was really enjoying helping to take care of them.

Once she had left the room, Danny turned to Chin. "OK, so how is he? You might as well tell us because he certainly isn't going to." Danny said.

"Honestly Danny, he looks like crap. He's pale and he is in a lot of pain. He's going to take his pain medication and then he's coming down so you can see for yourself, alright?" Chin said.

"OK, the fact that he is willing to take the medication without it being forced down his throat is a pretty good indication of where he stands pain wise though." Danny said remembering that when Steve had broken his arm, he had never even taken anything for the pain except maybe an ibuprofen or something. He knew Steve hadn't filled the pain medication prescription.

Chin made his way back upstairs. Steve was sitting on the edge of the bed, curled forward slightly protecting his arm, his right hand in a fist clawing at the bed, eyes shut. He opened them to look at Chin, but didn't make eye contact. He took the pills without argument. He wanted to change his shirt since it was stained and had bits of fiberglass residue from where the technicians had touched it when they were forming the brace on his arm. They had been able to just roll the sleeve up and work around it. Chin looked at the shirt and tried to figure out how he was going to get that off without causing Steve too much pain.

"Just get the scissors from the bathroom and cut it off. There's no good way to get it off." Steve said.

"Alright Steve." Chin said as he grabbed a tank top out of Steve's dresser. Chin cut the shirt and got it off. He accidentally let out a gasp when he took the shirt off and he saw the brusing. THere was bruising on the upper part of Steve's arm and his shoulder, but for some reason Chin thought that was OK figuring the injury that Steve had. What bothered him were the bruises on his back. He must have hit it against the wall at some point after he fell.

"What's the matter?" Steve asked when he heard Chin gasp.

"You have some pretty nasty bruises on your back, brah. That's got to hurt." he said.

"I must have done that when I fell. After I landed on my arm, I turned and must have hit my arm on the doorframe. I don't really remember, once the pain from the elbow hit, I couldn't think about much else." he said.

Chin just nodded silently in understanding.

"Alright, well let's finish this and get downstairs. I don't want Grace to worry any more than she already has." he said.

He was pretty sure he wasn't going to be able to get a long sleeve shirt on over the brace and the loose sleeves of the short sleeved shirt should be easy to work around. Chin very gently pulled Steve's arm out of the sling. He was careful to support his arm, but still felt bad as he saw Steve's face twist in pain. Next he threaded the tank top around the arm and then helped Steve get his head and other arm through. Then he again carefully threaded the short sleeve button down over the injured arm and then helped Steve slip his good arm through the other hole. After that was done, Chin helped him replace his arm in the sling as Steve was supporting the arm and couldn't get the sling on too. Steve was sweating and his breathing was labored with pain from the exertion.

A few minutes later, Steve was ready to make the trip downstairs. He too was anxious to see the other half of his team and Gracie. He wanted to see for himself that Danny was doing better and keep an eye on him to make sure that he wasn't over doing it. Steve cursed himself silently for the mess he had made of everything.


	28. Chapter 28

OK, the team is all back together and Steve and Danny will be able to check each other out now that Steve is back and they are both awake. Please read and let me know how I'm doing.

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><p>Steve and Chin made it downstairs slowly and carefully. Steve was painfully aware of how hard he had actually fallen based on the various aches and pains he was feeling that were most definitely not there before last night. He was trying to go slow to keep the pain at bay and not let Chin know how bad he really hurt, but Steve was pretty sure that Chin had it figured out anyway. Chin was just less in his face about it then Danny was going to be. Steve walked over to the spot on the floor where he fell. He cursed to himself at the innocent floor and how stupid he was for not being more careful. He looked at the wall and he was almost positive that he saw an indent in the wall where he hit it with his body. Just remembering sent painful shivers down his body.<p>

Steve stopped for a minute. He wasn't able to fully straighten up due to the discomfort in his back. He looked down and realized he was barefoot. He hadn't even taken the time to put shoes on. He had taken them off last night after the hospital. He thought about putting his sneakers on but then realized he would need to tie them. He would need two hands for that. He decided to stick with the barefoot look for now. His backyard was the beach after all. He paused at the slider and saw Danny sitting outside in one of the chairs. He looked OK. Steve was happy to see that he had the brace on his neck and his cane was propped up next to his chair. He was even happier to see that he was sitting down and smiling watching Grace and Kono play in the water.

Chin was still near Steve. He was trying not to hover, but that didn't mean that he didn't care. It just meant that he respected Steve enough to give him his dignity and space, but was close enough that if his boss was to falter he could still grab him. Steve appreciated this quality in Chin. He was calm and in control and did things without announcing that he was doing them. Once he was close enough to the chair that Chin figured he was safe, he kept walking and went to the beach with Kono and Grace.

Steve used his foot to angle the chair so that he could see Danny. When he nudged the chair with his foot he winced in pain. Realizing Danny couldn't see him from this angle, he made sure to wipe away any traces of pain from his face before he turned and sat down. He said with genuine concern "Hey Danno, how are you feeling?"

Danny replied with "Me? How am I feeling?" He paused before continuing. "I was not the one who spent the night in the emergency room with a busted elbow."

"It isn't busted..." Steve started, but was cut off by Danny.

"Are you arguing technicalities with me? It was dislocated which by the very definition means that it wasn't where it was supposed to be. That Steve does not equal fine. It means just the opposite of fine. " Danny started to rant.

"And I didn't spend the night in the emergency room..." Steve tried to rationalize.

"Again with the semantics. You my friend went to the emergency room voluntarily. You, who probably has stitched himself up when shot and who has probably wandered through the jungle with a broken leg, voluntarily went to the emergency room where you spent several hours last night. That also does not equate to being fine." Danny said.

"Danny, I never said that I was fine." Steve said quietly.

Danny was rendered speechless for a second. "Wait, did I hear you right? Are you saying that you are indeed not fine?" Danny asked.

Steve answered "Yes" with his eyes cast down as he held his injured arm cradled with the other.

The admission threw Danny for a loop and worried him all at the same time. "Seriously who are you and what have you done with Commander Steven J. McGarrett AKA superSEAL?" he joked. When he saw that Steve wasn't laughing or at least smiling at his , if he may say so himself, witty comeback he became worried.

He turned his body so that he was eye to eye with Steve. "Hey man, I was kidding. Could you just tell me seriously if you are OK?" Danny asked.

"I will live, but it hurts Danny. My damn arm hurts. I took the pain medication and it still hurts. I just got out of the cast and the sling and now I feel like I'm back there again." he sighed.

Danny got up and moved over closer to Steve. There was a little stool near Steve that Steve had put his feet up on it. Steve moved his feet over and Danny sat down on it. His knee protested loudly.

"Danny, that is too low. You are going to hurt your knee." Steve said worried about his friend.

"You let me worry about my knee, OK? Now let me see that arm." Danny said as he gently reached out for Steve's arm.

He saw that his fingers which were usually long and slender now more closely resembled sausage links. Now that he was closer he now saw the splint. It was big and was the length of this arm. He was wrapped up in ACE bandage as well. It pained Danny even to look at it. He grabbed the pillow that Grace had brought out and waited for Steve to lift his arm so that he could put the pillow under it. Steve however had tried that trick upstairs with Chin and still remembered the pain that had followed. He was in no mood for a repeat performance of that, so he didn't move. Danny took that as an invitation to help him. He supported Steve's arm gently, but securely and lifted it enough so that he could get the pillow under him making sure to use the pillow to pad his elbow so that it was protected from any pressure from the arm of the chair. The elevation hurt like hell at first, but then it felt better and Steve laid his head back and closed his eyes.

Danny took that opportunity to inspect his friend. He wasn't happy with what he saw. At that moment he saw Kono, Chin and Grace coming in from the water. He got up and as he did, he leaned on Steve's leg accidentally in an attempt to steady himself. Steve closed his mouth and grabbed the arm of the chair with his good arm to keep in the moan that was threatening to come out. Danny was standing and Steve did his best to sit up. He carefully lowered his leg to the ground.

"Uncle Steve!" Grace screamed as she barreled towards him. She came to a dead stop when she caught glimpse of the sling and the bandages.

"It's OK Gracie. I'm not going to break. You can give me a hug." he said as he reached out with his uninjured arm and pulled the little girl into an embrace. She squeezed him putting pressure right on the bruises on his back. He winced a little.

"Hey monkey, what about me?" Danny asked.

She removed herself from Steve and went over to give Danny a hug. She was careful to hug him around his stomach and chest instead of his neck.

"Hey boss. How's the arm?" Kono asked. "It looks pretty bad all bandaged up like that." she added.

"It's not too bad. It has a splint on the bottom of my arm, but since it is only a flat piece the elastic bandage keeps it in place. The splint keeps me from moving it and protects it from further injury while it heels." he explained. "It's only for a week. Then I have to do some therapy to make sure I haven't lost any motion in the elbow." he said.

"I'm glad that you are OK and you are home Uncle Steve." she said. "Is there anything that you need help with?" she asked.

"Him, he doesn't need help. He's superSEAL, he can do everything himself." Danny joked.

"Ha, you are wrong. Grace, I would very much like a bottle of water. Do you think you could get me one please?" he asked wanting to let the little girl help him.

"Sure, that's easy Uncle Steve. How about you Daddy?"

"Nah, I'm good Grace. Thanks for helping though." he said.

When she went inside Kono turned to them and said. "I was going to go home to shower and change. Then I was going to go to the store to get some stuff for tonight. Chin was going to grab a little sleep and we will be back later. I would like to take Grace with me if that is OK?" she said.

"Are you sure? You can leave her here. I am feeling better and we can manage." Danny said more confidently than he really felt.

"I am sure that you could, but I like to spend time with Grace and you guys could both use some more sleep" she said as she looked at both of them and could see them fighting back the sleep. Danny was tired from being in the sun all afternoon and once he took his next dose of medication he would surely be down for a little while. Even though Steve had just gotten up a little while before, getting downstairs and having taken his medication already, he was already showing his eyelids drooping.

"What does Grace think?" Danny asked.

"Can I Daddy? Can I please go with Kono? She's going to show me her surfboards." she pleaded.

"Alright. Alright. But don't be gone too long, OK? I miss my monkey too much when she isn't here." Danny said

"Sure thing Danny. Besides if we leave you two for too long, you are bound to have some sort of emergency." she said with a smirk.

"Alright, let's get you two inside and settled and then we'll go" she said just as Chin walked up and joined them.

Danny managed to get up on his own, but then swayed. Kono was right by his side with an arm to lean on and a smile. "Alright, you inside now." she said. She stayed near him as he made his way in the house. His knee was barely bending and his limp was pronounced even with the use of his cane. She directed him towards the bathroom as she didn't want to leave anything to chance while they were gone. He managed on his own and then she stayed with him and helped him settle into the high back recliner. She propped his legs on the ottoman and made sure to support his knee with pillows. She gave him his medication and left him with a bottle of water and his phone in case he needed it.

Chin helped Steve to his feet. Chin could see he was favoring one of his legs. He had noticed Steve limping a little earlier. Steve stopped, tensed and made the limp much less pronounced. He also made sure that McGarrett visited the restroom before settling him on the couch. He left both of their pills on the table with more water, snacks, the remote, both of their phones and some reading material. He figured that should be enough to keep them both out of trouble for a little while.

Chin locked up the house while Kono put a blanket over both of her teammates. Grace came running down the stairs, now dressed and out of her swim suit. She came in and said goodbye to the partners and with that the three of them were off with promises to return soon and reminders that they were only a phone call away.

Steve closed his eyes even though he didn't think that he should be tired anymore, but unable to fight it...

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><p>Well now they are alone...hmmm?<p> 


	29. Chapter 29

As much as I like to whump the boys...I just couldn't. I wanted Danny to be the one to discover Steve's ankle injury. I am not really that happy with this chapter, but i hope that you enjoy it anyway.

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><p>Danny tried to sleep, but despite the medication he still just wasn't that tired. He decided to get up and walk around a little. He needed to stretch out his knee before it got any more stiff and he was really in trouble. He slowly got up. His knee was protesting, his neck aching a little. He knew that it was time to start moving his neck now that it wasn't throbbing and wasn't sending shooting pain through his body. It hadn't felt that bad all day and now it had been officially a week so he was supposed to start to use the brace less and start moving it gently. He went to find the paper with the exercises that the doctor had left for him. He remembered that the doctor had said that although they wanted to protect it while it was healing he had to be careful not to let it get too stiff or he would have a hard time getting the range of motion back and his muscles would weaken. He went into the kitchen and found the papers on the refrigerator. They were clipped there with Steve's discharge papers. He quickly grabbed the pile and looked through it to find his and as he did he browsed through Steve's. Then he noticed there was other stuff attached to Steve's papers besides the stuff about the elbow dislocation and how to use the splint. There was paperwork on bruising and sprains as well. It was all very generic computer generated information sheets that he assumed were given to anyone who might have those injuries to cover the hospital. He couldn't find anything that said where the bruising or sprains might be, he assumed that it must involve his arm as well. He grabbed his exercise papers and went back to the chair.<p>

He sat down and took the neck brace off. He just sat there for a little while and enjoyed the freedom. He looked over the exercises. They were pretty basic. Just moving his head to either side, up down and doing gentle circles with his neck. It shouldn't be too bad and would be easy enough he figured. So he started gently and realized pretty quickly that he was wrong. It was not easy and it definitely was not comfortable. The paper said to start with 10 repetitions of each motion a couple of times a day so he very slowly and very gently did that. Then he just sat there. He waited for the pain to recede to a level that allowed him to think of something other than that pain for more than a few seconds. He hadn't expected it to hurt that much, but he knew that he needed to do it. He leaned back and grabbed the heating pad. He put it around his neck in an attempt to calm the angry muscles, then he tried to massage his neck a little the way Steve had done. It helped, but it wasn't as good as when Steve had done it. _Damn him, now he only has one good arm, he won't be able to do that anymore._ Danny thought to himself. Then he thought that he might ask Kono, but he would see if he needed to as the night went on. He closed his eyes letting the heating pad work and finally slept a little.

Steve woke up with a start a little while later. He had rolled over slightly and was putting pressure on his arm. He was on the couch. He took a minute to remember what had happened. As soon as he shifted, it came back to him in a flash. A blaring, painful, knocked him back down to the pillow flash. His arm was on fire and the rest of him ached pretty badly. He stretched out and when he did, his foot pressed against the far arm of the couch and Steve felt pain again. He remembered the arm. That made sense, but why the hell was his leg hurting him. He searched his memory. He remembered the doctor and then Chin also saying something about him bruising his back, but he couldn't place the burning pain in his foot. He tried to move his toes and found that they were swollen and sluggish to respond. Then he tried to move his ankle and again was hit with the white hot pain searing through his leg. OK, well at least he knew _what_ hurt. He thought a little more and then he remembered that the doctor had said something about an ankle sprain and staying off it while it was painful. Steve hadn't really paid attention to that though since his arm had hurt so much he thought that was the important information to listen to and he had. His back also wasn't feeling all that great.

As he sat up he realized he was moving like an old man. Steve had only hurt his back once before and it was a pain in the ass. Literally. He had pain that radiated down into both of his butt cheeks and it took a while to get better. He hoped that this wouldn't be like that since it was only bruising, but he would have to wait and see. He decided to get up to grab something to eat. He didn't want snacks. He wanted a sandwich or something more filling. He slowly swung his legs around and gingerly put his foot on the ground. He managed after several attempts and a few strings of curses under his breath to get to his feet. He used the couch to hold onto. He realized as more time was passing that his ankle was hurting more and more. It hurt to the point that he wasn't sure if it or his arm was hurting more. He made his sandwich, but when he went to open the mustard jar he encountered a problem. Opening a jar with only one hand was pretty difficult. His injured arm still hurt too much to hold the jar, but he tried anyway and the jar went crashing to the floor. He wasn't one to leave a mess, but he was barefoot and there was glass on the floor and there was no way that he was going to be able to get down on the floor to clean it up without hurting himself. He felt bad, but figured that it would have to wait until Chin and Kono got back. Luckily, it hadn't shattered into a million pieces, but cracked and was in only a few large pieces. He resigned to eating his sandwich without mustard.

The jar breaking woke Danny. He was up and in the kitchen much quicker than Steve thought someone with a bum knee and neck injury could move. "What the hell are you doing Steve?" he asked.

"I just wanted a sandwich." he said.

"Well go sit down before you hurt yourself again." Danny said.

"Fine, but I didn't hurt myself." Steve would have argued more, but he wasn't feeling that great and did want to sit down. He slowly walked over to the couch trying to mask the limp and tried to get comfortable. Then he grabbed the remote and put on a baseball game. He figured that Danny would like it.

Danny knew he wasn't going to be able to clean up the mess either. He watched as Steve limped stiffly to the couch. Then he wanted to kick himself. Of course, the wince when he moved the chair with his foot, and when Danny accidentally pushed on his leg, the limp, and then the hospital papers. He went to the freezer and grabbed some stuff out, grabbed some dish towels from one of the drawers and then headed back to the other room. He could only carry so much stuff while using his cane. He put an ice pack on the high back recliner. That was for his knee. Then he walked over to where Steve had laid across the couch. Danny grabbed some pillows. He used one to elevate his injured arm, then he grabbed another ice pack and put it in a dish towel and then put it on Steve's elbow.

"Thanks." Steve said as he grimaced. It hurt, it always hurt at first, but Steve knew it would feel good in a few minutes as the numbness took over.

"Don't thank me yet." he said. Danny walked down to the far end of the couch. Steve instinctively but painfully pulled his leg back so Danny could sit down. Steve laid his head back and closed his eyes. He was just letting the ice do it's magic on his arm. He was jerked back to reality by a sudden spike in pain.

"Danny, what the hell?" he asked as Danny lifted his ankle. He felt the couch move and then he felt his ankle being lifted up very gently and it was placed on several pillows then an ice pack was placed around the injured joint. Steve hissed with pain.

"Me? I didn't do anything but help you. Why are you yelling at me?" Danny asked. "You are the one who is ignoring his sprained ankle." Danny said.

"I wasn't ignoring, well OK maybe I was. I was hoping it would stop hurting. It didn't really start until I came downstairs this morning." he said. "How did you know?" he asked his hand on his head.

"I'm not stupid Steve. I put the pieces together. The winces, the muffled groans, the limp. Did you really think I wouldn't notice you limping. I am the king of limp remember? So how bad is it?" Danny asked.

"Not too bad. The arm is much worse. The ankle only really hurts when I am up and walking on it or someone accidentally hits it." he said honestly.

"...Or the blanket touches it or the wind blows on it or you look at it the wrong way?" Danny supplied.

"Does Chin know?" Danny asked.

"I'm not sure. I am sure that he figured it out or suspected something. He spent a lot more time with me with the hospital and all, but he didn't say anything so I don't know. I don't think that he was in the room when the doctor told me about it" he said. "I know he saw there was some bruising on my back. I haven't seen it myself, so I don't know how bad it is, but it's enough that it hurts to straighten up my back when I'm walking." he finished.

Danny walked away. He was glad that Steve was coming clean with him, but was upset that his friend was hurt and that it took him a while to tell him, but he did tell him and that counted for something. He went over to the chair and grabbed the heating pad. He brought it over to Steve. He gently rolled Steve forward. He lifted his shirt a little to see where the bruising was and he sucked in his breath.

"Steve, this isn't a little bruising. This is bad." Danny said with sympathy for his injured friend.

"Yeah, you should see the wall. I think there is a dent in it that matches those bruises." Steve said with a feeble attempt at humor.

"I bet there is." Danny said as he shook his head. He grabbed the heating pad and put in on his back. It took a minute, but then Steve relaxed into it welcoming the warmth that was wrapping itself around his back and easing the tension. He pulled the blanket back up and over Steve and then went back to his chair. He grabbed his own ice pack and put it on his knee. He leaned back and watched the game.

He called Chin to stop at the pharmacy and get Steve something for his ankle.

"Chin, did you see Steve's ankle?" Danny inquired.

"No, what is wrong with his ankle?" Chin asked.

"He sprained it when he fell." Danny said.

"He didn't say anything" Chin replied guiltily for not realizing sooner.

"Did you really expect him to? This is Rambo we are talking about, remember?" Danny said.

"Yeah, I guess now that you mention it, he was favoring one leg a little, but after I saw the bruises on his back I figured that he probably had some other ones and just figured it was that. I didn't ask him. I should have. I'm sorry Danny. Tell Steve I'm sorry too. I'll stop at the pharmacy and see what I should get him." Chin said.

"Thanks man. Don't worry about apologizing. You know Steve. You only know something if he wants you to know. Just bring him something so we can take care of that ankle." Danny said.

He went to check on Steve. He was sleeping on the couch snoring quietly face still etched with pain. Danny was starting to feel the ache set back in so he popped an ibuprofen, climbed back into the recliner and tried to sleep. He figured if he slept now he would be able to visit with his friends and play with Grace when they came back for the BBQ. He hoped that the ibuprofen would be enough until he was able to take his next dose at dinner time. He hoped Steve would be up to it as well. He knew that Steve would be upset if he wasn't. He closed his eyes and was asleep within minutes. The pain and exhaustion was taking its toll on him.


	30. Chapter 30

We are winding down. Hope that you enjoy it until the end. A few more chapters. Please review...

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><p>Kono, Grace and Chin came back to find them both asleep. They saw the broken jar on the floor. Chin immediately cleaned it up while Kono put stuff away. Grace went into the room with the men and carefully climbed up into her father's lap as he opened his eyes.<p>

"Hey monkey, did you have a good time?" he asked quietly trying not to wake Steve.

"Yep, Kono showed me all her boards and her dolls from when she was little and we had a great time. Were you and Uncle Steve OK without us?" she asked.

"Well we certainly missed our little helper, but yes we were OK. We slept a lot." he said.

"Hey Grace." Steve said as he also woke up. His eyes filled with pain as they met hers and Danny's.

Steve automatically tried to pull his ankle away before Grace saw it, but was unsuccessful. Her little eyes caught sight of the swollen extremity and the ice and she was immediately by his side.

Grace saw the ice pack on his ankle and asked, "Does your ankle hurt a lot Uncle Steve?" she asked full of concern. "Uncle Chin told me about it while we were out." she said.

"It didn't really hurt too much right away, but it hurts a little now. Your daddy wanted me to put some ice on it. I hurt it when I fell last night." Steve explained. He figured he should just come clean or else Grace might not trust that he was telling the truth. "Grace, I also hurt my back a little, just some bruises, nothing too serious, but it hurts me a little." Steve finished.

Danny was impressed with the honesty that Steve was displaying with Grace. He knew what he was doing though. They had just been through that with Danny's injuries and didn't want Grace to think that things were being hidden from her so he was glad that Steve had decided to use that approach.

Kono finally came in the room. She was carrying an ACE wrap bandage like the one that was holding Steve's hard splint on his arm. She also had an air cast splint for his leg. She put them on the coffee table and went back to finish unloading the items from the car. "I will help you with that as soon as I'm done, OK boss?" She said.

"Sure Kono, Thanks." he said.

Danny got up from the chair and moved over to where Steve was laying. "Move your freaking giant feet for a minute" Danny said while he waited for Steve to lift his leg and allow Danny to sit at the very end of the couch. Danny sat gently, easing himself down into the lower couch which neither his neck or knee liked. He motioned for Steve to put his foot in his lap. Steve did as he was told. Danny asked Grace to hand him the wrap. He took off the clips and asked her to hold them until he was ready for them. Danny gently wrapped Steve's ankle, starting at his heel and working up towards he leg. His touch was gentle and caring. Steve saw the discomfort on his face though. Danny had to look down at Steve's foot to see what he was doing and his neck was not very happy with that idea. He closed his eyes and used his touch to make sure that he smoothed every wrinkle and was sure that it was snug but not tight. He asked Grace for the clips and pretended like he was doing an operation and she was the nurse handing him instruments. Grace loved it and played right along. Then she handed him the air cast brace. He opened it. He positioned the bottom part on his heel then pulled the sides up and secured it with the velcro straps. He motioned for Steve to lift his leg again. Danny put his arm out and let Grace pretend to help him get up. Well he let her think they were pretending. Truth was he needed that little extra nudge to get off the low couch. Danny positioned the pillows that Grace handed him on the coffee table in front of them. They waited for Steve to lower his foot and then he asked Grace to put that ice pack away as well as his and get Steve a new one and to get cleaned up for dinner. She returned with the ice for Steve and she very carefully put it in place earning her a heartfelt smile from Steve. Then she went upstairs to get ready smiling and skipping as she went.

Once she was gone, Steve motioned for Danny to come over to the couch and sit next to him. Steve tried to position himself at an angle so that he could reach Danny with his uninjured arm. "This won't be perfect, but I can tell you may need it, so I will try. It won't be the first time I have done it one-handed, but it will be the first time I've done it one handed to some one else. What did you do today? I thought that you were resting like me most of the day." Steve said.

"I started my neck mobility exercises. I'm a little sore. That's all no big deal." Danny said.

"Actually, it is a big deal. If you work it too hard too soon, it will get worse. You need to take it easy and go slow. You were in a lot of pain yesterday. I'm just saying take it slow, OK?" Steve tried.

"Yeah, yeah. Look at who's talking. It's Mr. I took it so slow I almost killed myself tripping down the stairs and redecorating the wall with my body." Danny shot back.

"Do you want me to massage your neck or what?" Steve asked.

"Are you sure that you can do that with one arm." Danny said as he apprehensively took off the brace.

"Nope. But I can try." Steve said honestly. He put his arm on Danny's shoulder and started to massage. He worked the shoulder until it started to relax and the muscles loosened their grip. Then he went to the other shoulder which wasn't quite as tight since it wasn't the arm that he used his cane in. Then he gently worked around his neck.

Danny felt better. Even one handed, Steve gave a great massage. It was strong, but gentle at the same time. If he could do that in the shape he was in, Danny didn't want to think of the pain that Steve could truly inflict if he wanted to.

Kono and Grace came in as Danny was refastening his brace.

"Hey Grace. Do you think that you could help Kono and Chin bring stuff out for the BBQ? I'm not sure I'm going to be much help tonight. I hope I haven't ruined your special night." Steve said regretfully to the little girl.

"Sure Uncle Steve. I can help Kono and Chin. You didn't ruin anything. I am having a great time. It's nice being able to help Daddy and you. Daddy always tells me that it is important to be there for your ohana and you are my ohana so now I can be there for you too." she said with a smile as she went to the kitchen to see how she could help.

"How did you manage to raise such a smart, sweet little girl?" Steve asked Danny.

"I don't know Steve. I guess she's just following in the footsteps of her awesome caring father. Now get your lazy ass up and let's see how we can help." Danny said.

Steve eased himself onto his feet. His arm was throbbing. He tried to adjust his sling so that his arm was more elevated, but without putting more pressure on his elbow. His back was at a constant ache and he was just going to forget about his foot since it was completely misbehaving. The brace prevented him from bending his ankle too much though. Walking was harder, but it was a little more comfortable as he had the support there that he needed now.

Danny also pulled himself to his feet although he did much better than Steve. Danny grabbed his cane and walked to the kitchen. He was going to see what he could do to help.

Steve was still standing near the couch. The pain was really getting to him. His arm hurt badly. He knew he should take his pain medication, but he also knew it would put him to sleep. He opted for an ibuprofen instead. He was going to grab a beer too. He figured that would make up the difference and he could save the strong stuff for before he went to sleep. He tried to take a step and he swayed. He was a little dizzy from the pain. He held the couch and used it to help him stay upright. He made it to the back of the couch. He then staggered the few steps to the next piece of furniture and used it for support. Kono watched him and smiled.

"Hey Grace, why don't you come here for a minute?" Kono called to the little girl.

"What do you say you give Uncle Steve the present that we picked up for him while we were out. " Kono said with a wink.

"Uncle Steve, close your eyes. I'll be right back." Grace said.

Steve used the minute to lean against the cabinet and steady himself. Grace was back in a minute.

"Uncle Steve put out your hand." Grace requested.

Steve did as he was told. Grace placed the present in his hand. Steve immediately knew what it was. He was going to yell at Kono and tell her that he didn't want it, but when he opened his eyes and saw how happy and proud Grace was, he knew there was no way that was going to happen. He looked down and he saw the smiley stickers and the glitter and was a little embarrassed, but was happy that Grace would do this for him. He smiled at her and told her thanks. He put it in his hand and walked over to Kono. He gave her a soft punch in the shoulder, but added a smile to it.

Danny walked in at that moment and stopped dead in his tracks when he saw what Steve had in his hand. He was about to laugh and make fun of him when he looked and saw that it had obviously been decorated by Grace who was standing next to Steve beaming from ear to ear.

Steve quickly said, "Isn't it great Danny. Grace picked it out and decorated it for me." he said with a smile.


	31. Chapter 31

Well I guess most of you figured out what it was that Grace gave to Steve already, but for those of you who didn't...here it is

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><p>"Yes Steve, I think that is just about the prettiest cane that I have ever seen." Danny said with a smirk. He had removed his brace earlier and was able to move his neck a little to look between Steve and Grace without having to turn his whole body<p>

"I can make yours just like it if you want Danno." Grace said happily.

"Not now sweetie, we have to get dinner ready. Maybe another time. Plus I wouldn't want Uncle Steve to get jealous if mine turned out better than his." Danny said with a wink.

Steve shot him a look.

Regardless of what it looked like, Steve was grateful for the cane as it made getting around much easier and less painful. No one was going to see it in the house except his team and it would certainly be a conversation starter if he ever took it outside of the house.

He followed Chin and Kono into the kitchen as Danny and Grace brought some things out to the patio to put near the grill. "I just wanted to thank you guys for all you have done for us this weekend. I know I really messed things up and it was nice to know that you guys had my, well our backs. I hope that we didn't take you away from your families or anything else important." he said genuinely.

"Steve you are our family. Danny and Grace too. When you guys need us, there is nowhere else we need to be. You would do the same for us in a heartbeat and we know it. Thanks are not necessary. This is what ohana is all about brah." Chin said as he gave him a pat on his uninjured shoulder as he walked out to the grill.

"You're a lot sneakier than I give you credit for rookie" he said to Kono.

"Yeah, well I knew it would help you and if it came from Grace, I knew you couldn't say no." she said with an mischievous grin.

"You're right. Danny you are in trouble when that little girl gets to be a teenager and learns how to use that cuteness for evil teenage reasons." Steve said with a smirk thinking of Danny with a teenage Grace.

"I don't want to think about it. In my mind she is going to stay my little monkey forever. Let me live in my little fantasy for a while longer, OK?" Danny said.

"It won't be too much longer Danny, and I know all about teenage girls, I was one myself not too long ago." she said followed by an evil laugh as she went out to help Chin cook.

There were still a few things left to be brought out. Danny grabbed some rolls and some of the condiments and brought them outside. Steve followed empty-handed. "Hey man, you could have grabbed something too." he said.

"No, it's all you babe. Can't carry anything if I'm using the cane. No free hands." Steve said with a smirk as he made his way back inside to the couch and put his ankle up. All kidding aside the damn thing was throbbing to the same beat as his arm just not as loudly. His arm was actually sending bolts of pain every time he jostled it. He supported it with his other arm. Even though it was in the sling, the pressure and security made it feel better. When he was on his feet, he couldn't do that because he needed his other arm for the cane. He knew that he was due for some pain medication, but wanted to wait a while. He knew that medication would put him to sleep and he wanted to enjoy the eventing with his friends.

Danny just shot him a look. He went back and forth with Grace helping and they brought out the rest of the stuff. Steve just laid back in the couch and closed his eyes trying to will the pain away. He had noticed that Danny was starting to limp a little heavier too and felt a pang of guilt in his stomach. He was supposed to be taking care of Danny so that he could relax and get better.

Grace said to Danny "Daddy, go sit down. I know that you don't feel good. I will finish helping Uncle Chin and Kono. Do you want me to get you some ice?"

Danny was taken back by how perceptive his little girl was. "No monkey. I don't need ice, but I think I will sit down for a few minutes. I will be right inside." he said wearily.

Finally, Steve saw Danny sit down and Steve noticed the way he was being extra gentle with his knee and moving stiffly trying to make sure not to move his neck. He had put the brace back on and there was a pained look that would sneak on Danny's face when he thought that no one was looking and even after Danny had shut his eyes and dozed off. Steve closed his eyes and let sleep take him as well.

"Dinner's ready for the patients." Chin said lightly with a smile into the house as he looked at the two men who were both propped up with their eyes closed inside. They both had looks of pain on their faces despite being asleep. Chin wasn't sure if they were awake. He repeated his earlier statement about dinner being ready, but neither of them opened their eyes or made an effort to move. Chin wasn't sure if he should wake them. He figured that sleep should trump eating so he let them be.

Chin, Kono and Grace had a nice dinner. They joked and laughed and kept the little girl entertained. She had gone in before she started eating and had put ice on her father's knee and on Steve's ankle and arm and then covered them with blankets. It was hard for her to do it without waking them up. When she put the ice on Steve's ankle he had stirred a little, but then had gone back to sleep.

As they were bringing everything back into the house, Steve woke up. He looked down at his ankle and saw the ice as well as the one that was on his arm. He also saw that he had been covered by a blanket. He looked up at Kono asking if it was her.

"Nope. That was all Grace. She's an amazing little girl you know." she said with a smile as she looked proudly at Grace who was still helping Chin clean up outside.

"Yeah, I know." he said with a similar look.

Grace walked back in and saw that Steve was awake as Kono went outside to get the rest of the things that they had brought out.

"Uncle Steve, you're awake!" she said and then lowered her voice seeing Steve pointing to a still sleeping Danny.

"Yep and it seems like someone came in while I was sleeping and put some ice packs on my ankle and arm and even covered me." he said with a grin. "You wouldn't know who did that, would you? I would like to be able to say thank you." he said.

"It was me, Uncle Steve. I did it. I hope it helped you." she said with a shy smile.

"It did Gracie. In more ways then you'll know. Now come over here and give me a big hug." he said.

She walked over to him and to his side opposite of his injured arm and leg. She stood there and waited.

"It's OK Grace. Give me a hug. I won't break." he reassured her.

She leaned forward and gave him a big hug and he returned it one-handed. She was careful of his bruised back and his arm.

"Hey, are you using up all my monkey's big hugs?" Danny said as he was waking up as well.

He looked at Grace and then at the blanket and ice on his knee as well as the one on Steve.

"Did you do all this sweetie?" he asked as he waved his hands between Steve and himself.

"Yep. I hope it was OK. I didn't ask Chin or Kono before I did it, I'm sorry." she added.

"It was perfect. Come here and see your dad." he said.

She walked over to him and he pulled her into a big hug.

"Is anyone up for some ice cream?" Kono asked as she walked into the house with Chin and the last of the outside stuff. Chin had closed up everything outside and shut the door behind him.

"Daddy and Steve need to eat their dinner first. That's the rule." Grace said matter-of-factly.

"You are right sweetie. How about we eat our dinner while you guys have your dessert?" Danny suggested.

"Sure" Grace replied.

"Grace why don't you join me in here and we'll get everything ready for our sundaes. Grab the guys' ice packs and we'll put them back in the freezer so they are cold for later." Kono said.

Grace did as she was told.

Danny started to get up. He winced from discomfort both in his knee and his neck. He sat back down and waited a minute to try again.

Steve of course had seen and said quietly almost under his breath. "I shouldn't have let you do so much earlier. I should have helped you bring the stuff outside." Then he cleared his throat and went on "Are you OK? I saw that look."

"Seriously? You haven't even been home from the hospital for 24 hours and you were obviously in pain even though you would never have admitted it. SuperSEAL doesn't duck out of work. I know if you could, you would have helped. I'm fine. Yes, I hurt, but it's OK. I have a headache too. I will take my pills as soon as Grace is ready for bed. I plan on having a beer...or two with dinner which should work just fine to take the edge off until then. How about you?" Danny asked.

"Me? I have thick SEAL skin. I'm fine..." he started to say, but then decided to ammend it when he saw the look that Danny was giving him and could sense the rant that was on the tip of his partner's tongue.

"Certain parts of my body may be throbbing, but I think I will live. I may even join you for that beer. I took some ibuprofen earlier, but am pretty sure they are no longer working by now and I want to be able to sleep so I'll wait until later to take the other stuff." Steve said honestly

With that Danny gave Steve a nod of understanding and started the treacherous process of getting up. Chin walked in at that moment.

He offered Danny a hand which he waved away. Chin just offered it again. Danny gave him a look, but took it and Chin had him gently, but steadily up and on his feet. Before he knew what was happening, he had his cane in his hand and Chin at his side with an arm on his back and was walking to the kitchen to join Grace at the table. A wave of dizziness hit him, but Chin steadied him so Grace didn't see. Chin tensed and Danny muttered "headache" to him. Chin gave him a nod and kept walking. Almost before he sat Grace was at his side with a pillow and an extra chair to prop his leg on. He just smiled at her as he lowered his leg gently onto the chair.

Chin went back and repeated the process with Steve. Chin stayed as close to Steve's side as he could without actually touching him. Steve, while probably in as much or more pain than Danny, was steadier on his feet. Stiffer and slower, sure, but definitely more steady.

He sat down gingerly in the hard wooden chair. Grace had a pillow for behind his back and another chair with a pillow for him. He sat across the table from Danny. "Any more injuries and I'm going to have to invest in more chairs." He said with an attempt at humor.

Steve and Danny ate their dinners and the others finished their desserts. Grace went upstairs to get ready for bed and the guys both took their medicine. Chin and Kono looked at each other.

"I'm going to stay with you guys tonight." Kono said.

"Kono, you don't have to do that." Steve and Danny said in unison.

"I know I don't have to, but I am going to anyway." she said. "You guys seem to get into trouble as soon as you are left alone and Grace is still here so I can help her if she needs it too." she explained. "If it's OK with you, I'm going to sleep in her room with her. We'll have a girl's night. It will be fun. She has a full size bed in there so it's plenty big enough for both of us." she continued. "I already got my stuff when I was home earlier." she said with a smirk.

"See I told you I underestimated your sneakiness Rookie." Steve smiled.

"If you don't mind, I'm sure Grace wouldn't mind the company." Danny said. "You guys have been real lifesavers this weekend. I don't know how to repay you." he added.

"No need. Just like Chin told Steve, we're Ohana. That's what we do for each other. It's what you would do for us. No thanks or repayment needed. But we do reserve the right to tease you when you are feeling better." she couldn't help but add with a smirk.

They all laughed at that. "I wouldn't expect any less." Danny said.

Chin finished cleaning up. He was definitely the level-headed father figure of the group. "I will help you guys upstairs and then I'll lock up on my way out. I have a date with my pillow at home. Call if you need me though." he added.

True to his word, he helped each man upstairs and helped them as they needed with using the restroom and getting ready for bed. For Danny that meant his shoes off and and sleep pants on. Chin helped him in bed.

Steve needed more help. Getting his shirt off required him to be very careful. Steve also needed help with putting his sleep pants on because his back was aching making bending down low to get his sleep pants on hard. He left his tank top on. Chin propped him with pillows and covered him since it was hard for Steve to do with one arm.

Grace came in and said goodnight to Steve. "Thanks for taking such good care of us today Grace. I don't know what we would have done without you." he said with a smile.

Grace was beaming and her smile went ear to ear. She was really proud that she was able to help her two favorite guys. Then she went to see Danny.

"Danno, I'm tucking you in tonight." She said as she pulled up his covers then climbed into the bed and gave him a hug and a kiss.

"Goodnight Danno." she said.

"Goodnight Monkey. Danno loves you." he said.

With that she went to her room to wait for Kono.

Kono got ready for bed herself then went to check on both of the guys and threaten them that they were not to get up on their own and if they tried she was going to kick their asses. Neither of the men wanted to find out if there was any truth to that threat.

Everyone settled in for what they all hoped would be a completely uninteresting night of sleep.


	32. Chapter 32

Almost done. THis one is a little longer. Enjoy and review.

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><p>Steve woke up first to the start of the sunrise outside the guest bedroom window. He had insisted that Danny stay in his bed for a few more nights. It was more important that he have the good bed with his neck injury. He was able to sleep wherever he was and could elevate his ankle and position on his side off his back and elbow just fine in this bed. The one downfall was the bathroom though. This room was the furthest from a bathroom. He hurt like hell today. After he got a good night sleep everything had a chance to settle and his muscles were not happy with him.<p>

He was going to get up, but the pain was just too much. He didn't want Grace to wake up and find him on the floor or hurt again. He also didn't want to wake the whole house up so he slipped his phone out and called Kono with his good hand surprised. She took a few rings to answer since her phone was on vibrate. She didn't actually even answer. She saw Steve's picture come up and instead just pulled herself off Grace and headed for his room. She was half way there when she remembered he was in the guest room so she backtracked and went to find him.

She was relieved to see him still in bed and without any further injury. "Hey Boss, what's up?" she asked.

"I need to go to the bathroom." he said with a voice that barely resembled his normally strong commanding one.

He was in pain. She could see it. She wanted to say something to lighten the mood, but seeing him like this was breaking her heart and she couldn't. He looked so young and so vulnerable. This was the side of Steve McGarrett that few got to see. The side that made him who he was.

"Alright Steve, tell me how I can help?" she said. She had no idea how to help him without causing him further pain.

"My arm seems to have slipped out of the sling somehow while I was sleeping. Could you help me get it back in and then help me sit up." he asked with that same weary voice. He didn't know how much more pain he could take before he would pass out. He hadn't had pills for probably close to 10 or 11 hours and he was feeling it.

"I need my pills. They are right there on the nightstand." he said barely being able to catch his breath, but doing his best not to fully show his pain to Kono.

He dry swallowed the pills and then he asked her to help him stand. She grabbed his arm and helped him up then gave him the cane. He put his foot down and the pain was too much. "Might need more than the cane. Use my shoulder. " she said as she wrapped his right arm around her shoulder and allowed him to lean on her. He knew that he probably weighed twice as much as she did, but he also knew that she could hold her own and would be pissed if he didn't let her help just because she was girl or smaller than him.

"Thanks" he said as they hobbled down the hall to the bathroom. It was a long process since Steve had to stop to catch his breath every few steps. He was panting heavily. They finally made it to the bathroom. She helped him to the toilet then hesitated.

"I'll be Ok. I'll call you when I'm done." he said.

"Are you sure boss? If you fall Danny will kill me." she said.

"I'm sure Kono. I called you to help me in the first place didn't I? I know my body. I'm ok to do this." he said.

She walked out the door and shut it mostly. She kept her ear pressed to the door waiting for him to be finished. She heard the flush and then she heard him say "Damn it" and then she heard her name.

She was surprised to walk in and see Steve in his underpants. Her cheeks pinked at the sight. "Damn pants feel. I can't get them without taking a header in the toilet" he said apologetically.

"No problem. I had brothers you know. Lots of boys in only underwear all the time." she said as she dismissed it and helped him pull them up. She helped him back to the bed and got him settled. She could see his eyes beginning to droop and knew that the medication was working. She covered him up and he smiled at her goofily. Yep, she thought, the pills are definitely working.

She crawled back into bed with Grace and was sound asleep within a minute.

Several hours later, the house started to wake up. Grace was first. She extricated herself from Kono and went to check on her father. When she walked into his room, he opened his eyes. "Hey monkey. Are you the only one up?" he asked.

"Yep. Kono was starting to wake up and Uncle Steve is still snoring." she said.

"OK Sweetie. Do you think that you could get me my pills and a glass of water from the bathroom?" he asked. A long night with no medication and he wasn't sure what shape he was going to be in although he didn't feel all that bad, but then again he hadn't moved. He needed to sit up to take his pills. He managed to scoot himself back against the headboard, but was definitely not comfortable. Before he could rearrange himself. Grace had climbed on the bed and put a few pillows behind his back. She grabbed the extra one and put it over his lap and put her head down. He took his medicine and then stroked her hair as they just laid there. They were both just enjoying being together. Kono came in a little while later.

"That's where you got off to. I hope you didn't wake your dad." she said to Grace.

"Nope he was already awake. He took his medicine a little while ago." she said.

"Good. Now it's time for him to get out of bed. Grace do you think you could go get the shower ready for him? Grab his clothes like we did yesterday, OK? But we need to be quiet so we don't wake Uncle Steve OK? He had a bit of a rough night." she whispered to Danny.

"Sure thing Kono." she said as she scampered off.

"Alright spill. What happened to McGarrett?" Danny asked suspiciously.

"Nothing. He woke up really early this morning. He was in awful pain and needed to get to the bathroom. He called me and I helped him. Then he took another dose of meds and passed out in his bed." she said.

"How bad was he?" Danny asked hurt that he couldn't have been there for his friend, but thankful that Kono had insisted on staying.

"Bad. His ankle was barely taking weight. I had to practically hold him up. He was cradling his arm whenever he could trying to stop that from hurting, but I don't think it was working." she said. "But you didn't hear that from me. I do not want to be on Steve's bad list." she said with a smile.

"Alright, well let's see what shape I'm in today." he said as he edged to the side of the bed. His knee was stiff. He worked through some of it and then stood at the edge of the bed holding on to his cane.

"Well that's not too bad. Pills must be working. Good night of sleep worked wonders too. Danny managed to make it to the bathroom without actual assistance from Kono. He took off his brace and got into the shower. He told her that he would be ok. She agreed to just wait outside. He let the hot water relax his muscles. He did some of his exercises in the hot water and noticed that they were slightly easier since the muscles were more pliable. He managed to shampoo his own hair today and was able to get out of the tub and wrap his towel around his body as well as lightly dry his hair without assistance today.

He sat down and was able to get his boxers on after a little struggle. His knee being more cooperative today then it has been in a long while. His pants took some extra work, but he was able to do those too. Good think no one was in a rush for the bathroom since he had kept it tied up for a good while. He pulled on a loose button down hawaiian shirt that Grace had picked for him so that he didn't have to pull it over his head. He was so proud of himself. It seemed like a really long time since he had been able to do that himself. He walked out of the bathroom proudly and sat on the edge of his bed. Grace and Kono were looking at him.

"Alright. I give. I need some help with the socks and shoes, please" he said.

Grace was on the floor in a flash pulling his socks on gently being cautious of disturbing his knee. He slid into both of his shoes and Grace tied them. He picked up his brace, didn't put it on, but took it with him and headed downstairs. It was still a slow process, but he was pleased to be doing it on his own since he had needed help last night from Chin.

Steve woke up as Danny got downstairs. Kono felt her phone going off. This time she answered it. "Hey boss everyone else is awake. I'll be up in a minute."

Grace said "It's OK Kono, you can go take care of Uncle Steve I'll stay with my dad." Kono knew that Danny was exhausted from all the activity of the morning and knew he wasn't going anywhere.

"Alright I'll yell if I need any help and you guys do the same" Kono instructed as she headed upstairs to find Steve.

He was already sitting up at the edge of the bed when she got there. "You look like you are feeling better today" she said.

"Yes I am. Thanks for the help last night. Could have been interesting if you weren't here." he said with a shy smile.

"Ok. Are you ready for a shower? You are starting to smell a little ripe" she said with a giggle.

"Can I take this off for the shower?" he asked.

"I dont know. Let's get you in the bathroom and then I'll go grab the papers and see what it says. You need to use that bathroom, to brush your teeth and get dressed anyway." she said.

She went and found the paperwork that said he was to leave the brace on for the week and could take if off after that if healing was sufficient, but the elastic wrap could be changed if it became soiled. So she went to find a plastic bag and some duct tape. She was able to locate both fairly easily since Steve is slightly OCD from his SEAL time.

"I guess that's a no to taking it off." he said.

"Yeah for now." she said. "Well, let's get you to the bathroom."

Steve stood up slowly and gingerly and tested his ankle. It seemed a little better. He put some weight on it and it held. He motioned for the cane. Kono handed it to him. She adjusted the sling a little for him and stayed close as he walked to the shower. He sat at the edge of the tub and she helped him take the ankle brace off followed by the elastic compression ACE wrap. She took the sling off cautiously like she was afraid that Steve was going to explode or something. She then worked on the tank top very gently. She got his uninjured arm out and then eased it off of his injured left arm. She had seen Steve without his shirt on before, but this was just so much more intimate. She helped him put the plastic around his arm and secure it with duct tape. When she was done with that she wasn't sure where to look. She decided that out the window was a good choice. She helped his stand and he eased his sleep pants off then she put a towel around his waist and he shimmied his underpants off and she helped him sit back at the edge of the tub. There was no way he was going to be able to stand for the shower. She handed him the detatched shower head and turned on the water. Steve assured her he was going to be ok. She said that she was staying right outside the door and the door was staying open at least half way so she could get to him if he needed her. He relented to those conditions. It took him a lot longer than if someone had helped him, but he managed to wet himself, clean all the essential areas then rinse himself again. There was a grab bar in the tub, but it was useless to him because if he used it he didn't have a free hand to do anything with.

He draped the towel to cover his front. He wasn't able to wrap it around his body with just the one arm. He called Kono to tell her he was ready for her to come in and help. They reversed the process and when he was all dry and had most of his clothes on she helped him put the sling back on and then rewrapped his ankle and put on the brace. She also put on a pair of sneakers for him since she figured it would give his ankle more support. She had to loosen all the laces and even then she was barely able to tie them.

"Alright. Now that you are totally exhausted, do you want to go downstairs and get some breakfast or do you want to lay down for a little while?" she asked.

"I think I can make it downstairs. Grace will be going home today so I want to spend time with her before she goes. I will take my pills then just relax on the couch or outside in one of the chairs." he said.

"Alright, lets go."she said.

She followed him closely as he made his way downstairs. He found breakfast on the table with Danny and Grace laughing gently sitting at the table. They were just getting ready to eat. Steve's place with his extra chair and two ice packs were waiting for him.

He smiled at Grace. "Thanks Grace. You really do know how to take care of someone. Maybe someday you'll be a good nurse or at the least make an excellent mother."

"Please Steve. I can not think about being a mother just yet. Can we let her grow up first, please." he pleaded.

"I was just saying that she was very helpful and caring." Steve explained.

"Yeah, well she learned from the best." Danny bragged.

Steve lifted his leg carefully on the chair. He went for the ice packs, but Grace already had them and were putting them in their places.

They enjoyed their breakfast and then got Grace packed up to go back to her mother as Steve had promised. There was still the little problem of who was going to drive her as neither of them should be driving in their state.

"Are you all packed up kiddo?" Danny asked.

"Yep. Kono helped me last night. I just have to put my pjs in my bag and I'm ready to go. I don't have to go so soon do I daddy?" Grace whined.

"No, not yet, but mom wants you home by lunch time. You are supposed to go to the club with Stan and her for some lunch thing." he said.

"Oh, yeah. I remember now. I want to stay here with you and Uncle Steve, and Kono." she said sadly.

"I know sweetie, but Uncle Steve promised your mom." He tried to explain.

"OK. But who is going to take care of you guys?" she asked with concern.

Kono stepped in. Chin and I will help them until we are sure that they are ok. Don't worry about that Grace. I've been taking notes from you all weekend. I think I'll be able to do it. I learned from the best." she said with a smile and a wink at Grace.

"OK. Don't let them do too much. They don't like to rest." she said with a frown. "And make them take their medicine so they don't hurt too much." she reminded.

"Will do Nurse Grace." Kono said as she saluted Grace which of course sent the little girl into hysterics.

"Speaking of taking Grace home, how exactly were you two planning on accomplishing that?" Kono asked.

"I guess I could call Rachel and have her come pick her up" Danny suggested.

"Nah, that's not what I meant. I meant did you want me or Chin to take her?" she asked with a playful smile and a raise of her eyebrow.

"If it's OK with you, I thought that we would call Chin to come over and take us. That way you can get cleaned up and get some shut eye if you want." Danny said.

"I'm OK Danny, I slept well actually. I only got up the one time." she said.

"You mean to tell me that you slept well with Octo-Grace?" Danny said. The little girl put on a shocked face, but then laughed. It was a well known joke around the family that Grace was a pretty wild sleeper at times.

"Yep, what you don't know is that I also can be that way and I am bigger so I pinned her early on and from then on out it was smooth sleeping." she said.

"You never cease to amaze me." Steve laughed.

They finished their breakfast reminiscing about stories of Grace growing up and the various injuries she had inflicted on her parents when they had shared the bed over the years.

Afterward, Grace helped Kono clear the table and do the dishes and Danny called Chin.

"Hey man, do you think you could come over and give me a lift to get Grace back to Rachel? I figured Kono would want to get some shut eye and a shower." Danny asked.

"Did everything go OK?" Chin asked with concern.

"Yep everyone woke up in as many pieces as they went to bed in the previous night. Kono even survived Octo-Grace in bed." Danny said.

"Sure I'll get dressed and be there in a little while." Chin said.

"Thanks man." Danny said.

"No thanks for Ohana, remember?" Chin said as he hung up.

Grace went to get her things and bring them downstairs.

Steve stretched out on the couch and Danny told him not to get too comfortable.

"What? Why the hell not?" Steve asked.

"You are coming with us." Danny said.

"Why, you will have Chin. You don't need me." Steve said.

"Maybe, but I do need to keep an eye on you. There is no way in hell I am leaving you alone in this house in the shape that you are in currently." Danny said looking over Steve and seeing the weary expression on his face and the pain starting to edge back into his face.

"I will be fine. I promise to stay on the couch and not move until you get back." he said

"Uh-huh. I bet. Until there is a rogue squirrel or something in the backyard and you try to investigate. No thank you. You are coming, it is not negotiable. Kono is on my side. Do you really want to mess with her?" he asked.

"Fine. I will come. I'm just going to rest until we go. Is that alright with you?" he asked.

"Sounds like a splendid idea. I was planning the same thing actually. I want to be as good as I can to face Rachel as I am sure that there will be some fall out from your conversation...Not that I didn't appreciate it man." he said.

They both dozed on the couch while they waited for Chin to show up.


	33. Chapter 33

The Rachel encounter...and just when I was winding down out of nowhere comes this idea...I should get this one out of my system rather quickly though and hopefully get this thing finished up. It's late or early depending on how you look at it. Hope you enjoy...And REVIEW!

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><p>Kono left to go home and shower and change. She promised to be back to help with dinner later. Chin helped load everyone in the car. Danny was first in the back seat. He had shorter legs than Steve so it was logical that he was in the back, plus Grace was going to be in the back. Getting Danny into the car was a challenge since Chin has a SUV and it is on the taller side. Danny managed to hoist himself up, not very gracefully, but it accomplished the task. Danny needed to stretch his knee out during the trip so it didn't tighten up on him so he sat behind Chin so that he could stretch his right leg out to where Gracie was without too much interference from anything else. Grace climbed in with Danny. She was tiny in the big seat, but it allowed Danny the room he needed, but still allowed him to be close to his little girl. Steve sat in the front. He had the longest legs and Grace sat behind him so he was able to push the seat back. Unfortunately, Steve's problem was more about elevation then needing the leg room to stretch out, but he wasn't going to deny Danny being close to Grace. It all seemed to work out OK in the end.<p>

Danny was able to prop his back against the door and was able to lean back on the door and the seat to relieve the pressure on his neck. He was currently wearing the brace since car rides could be unpredictable and he wanted to protect his healing neck. After all an unpredictable car ride was what started this whole mess. He was still trying to decide if he was going to wear it when he brought Grace to the door. He didn't want Rachel's pity, but a little understanding wouldn't be too bad. If he didn't wear it, Rachel might think that he had been exaggerating the whole thing. He also didn't want to look too hurt in case she planned on using it against him somehow. He really didn't have any choice about using the cane if he actually intended on moving. He went back and forth in his head. He decided he would wait and see how he felt when he got there. He knew whichever way he decided the other way would be the right way.

Steve was lost in his own mind as well. The weekend was coming to a close. This was not how he had envisioned it earlier in the week when he had told Rachel that he would take care of Danny and Grace. He wondered what she would think when they pulled up in Chin's SUV instead of the camaro or even Steve's truck. He figured that this was going to be interesting at the very least, but was actually glad that he wasn't the one that would have to be facing the wrath of Rachel. He cradled his arm tightly to his body trying to protect it from being jarred too much with any of the bumps or turns. It was helping slightly. His ankle was doing ok, but he wondered when it was going to become aware of the fact that it had been down for a long period of time and start to throb incessantly.

Grace was smiling and singing along to the radio. She was happy. It had been a nice weekend and she was sad that it was over, but she knew the next one would be even better since Danny and Uncle Steve would be better by then and they could do all the fun stuff that they couldn't do this weekend. She watched the scenery go by.

Chin was watching the road, he was listening to Grace sing, he was watching Steve and he was checking in the rearview mirror to keep an eye on Danny. He had it all under control for the moment. He had gotten a good night's sleep and was feeling good today. He was happy to be surrounded by his Ohana. He hadn't felt like he was part of a family since the whole stolen money incident had happened. Steve had taken him at his word and formed this family. This family that Chin would do anything for, just as he had done for his Uncle and his other family before everyone had shunned him. He still knew what he had done was right and that was all that mattered. He had moved on and wanted to let the past stay in the past. After all his life right now was looking pretty good.

They arrived at Rachel and Stan's. Rachel let them in through the gate, but was puzzled at the car. She was waiting outside the door when they pulled up to the house. Grace ran to her mother as soon as the car had stopped. Rachel was giving her daughter a big hug when she saw Danny slowly get out of the car. He had left the brace on. He remembered the phone conversation with Rachel and the pain that had left him in. His neck didn't feel that great and he knew he was in for a fight, which would undoubtedly leave him open for injury if he wasn't supported in the collar. He limped over to her with his cane and said, "Hey Rachel, thanks for letting Steve get her from school so I could see her this weekend."

"Speaking of your partner, where is he? I expected to see him driving you to drop off Grace today. Who brought you?" she asked curiously.

"Detective Chin Ho Kelly. He's one of my teammates from five-O." he said. He really didn't want to have to tell Rachel the specifics about Steve.

"And your partner is where? He promised me that he was going to be taking care of you two this weekend." she said.

"He's in the car too. He's had a long weekend." Danny said avoiding broaching the subject head on.

Rachel was embarrassed for a minute. "Oh, I hope that Grace wasn't too much trouble. She minded her manners didn't she?" Rachel asked.

"Yes, Rachel. Grace was excellent this weekend. She was actually a big help. She has a real knack for taking care of people. We might have a future nurse or doctor on our hands here." he said proudly.

"Really? I could have told you that." she said with the same proud look on her face as she turned to Grace.

"Did you have a fun time taking care of your father this weekend?" she asked. "Your dad can be a handful when he isn't well. Believe me, I know." she said with a laugh. There wasn't any evil intentions behind it it was more reminiscent really.

"Daddy was OK. Uncle Steve and Daddy kept each other in line and they let me help them so that they wouldn't get any more hurt. Uncle Steve loved the way I decorated his cane too." she went on excitedly.

"Daddy" Rachel corrected her. "Daddy liked the way you decorated his cane" Rachel finished correcting the little girl while looking at Danny's cane and not noticing anything particularly different about it.

"No mommy. I decorated Uncle Steve's cane." Grace corrected her mother adamantly.

"Daniel, what is she talking about?" Rachel asked obviously confused.

"Steve got hurt Friday night." Danny said.

"Nothing serious I hope." Rachel said.

"Well, he'll live. He managed to take a header into the wall. He dislocated his elbow and sprained his ankle pretty badly. Hence, the cane." Danny said.

"You said that he this happened on Friday night?" she inquired.

"Yes." Danny replied realizing that short to the point answers were his safest bet.

"Did Grace see this happen?" She asked knowing how much her daughter cared for Danny's partner.

"No." he answered.

"How is that possible?" she asked growing tired of the short answers and having to fish for information.

"It was in the middle of the night. I had a really bad night." Danny said as he winced remembering the pain that he had been in and he rubbed absentmindedly at his neck even though he had the collar on and couldn't feel it. "I needed my medication and Steve was in a rush to get it. He missed a step on his way down, hit the floor and skidded into the wall hurting his elbow, back and ankle in the process. He still managed to get back upstairs with my pills, help me to bed and wait for me to fall asleep before he had Chin take him to the hospital." he said shaking his head thinking about how much pain Steve must have been in that night that he ignored to put Danny's needs above his own.

"Wow, I always assumed the stories that Grace told me about how tough he was were grossly exaggerated, but now I know they probably were not." she said.

"I certainly hope that you helped him and didn't let him wait on you while he was hurt like that." she accused.

"No, I did not let him wait on me. What gives you the impression that I would let anyone wait on me, let alone Steve of all people?" he asked.

"I was married to you, remember? You had your share of illnesses and injuries. Enough that I know your normal behavior." she said with a smirk knowing that he wouldn't really be able to argue with her. She was right. He was a lousy patient.

"We had help anyway" he said. "Chin and Kono, she's our other teammate, stayed with us for the remainder of the weekend after Steve got hurt. They took turns with us. Everyone worked together. And Grace, Grace was awesome."

"Did you say that he was in the car?" she asked embarrassed that she had forgotten her manners. "Does he need anything? Would he like to come in to stretch for a little while and have a cup of tea? With those injuries surely the car trip must not have been pleasant for him. Remember when I sprained my ankle when we were skiing Daniel? Ughh, my ankle still hurts just thinking about it. Then to have to take care of you and Grace on top of it. That poor man. Please go ask him if he needs anything. We have a little time still before we have to be at the club." Rachel said.

"Steve? Steve does not need anything. He is just fine." Danny said starting to get annoyed. _When did this become all about poor Steve_ he thought to himself. _She hasn't even asked about me. It's like everyone else, when Rambo is around, it's like I don't even exist. _He knew that Rachel and Steve got along pretty well. They had been pleasant both when they used Rachel's house for the stake out and when his brother Matt was here.

He was brought out of his little pity party by Rachel. "I'm sorry Daniel, how are you feeling? I see you and your cane have become reacquainted. Did you injure your ACL again? And your neck? How much longer until you can get out of that brace. It looks mighty uncomfortable." she said. Danny knew that she was just trying to soothe his ego by asking, but it felt nice anyway.

"I, Rachel am doing much better. A weekend with my Gracie can fix just about anything as far as I am concerned. No, it wasn't my ACL, just sprained my knee. It's getting better. I hope to ditch this soon. The brace is also only here for a little while. I'm not wearing it all the time anymore, just when I think I need the extra support. Thanks for asking." he said.

"Of course, Daniel. I do still care about you, you know. Now please go ask Steven if he needs anything before he goes. Detective Kelly as well. He should probably be getting a medal for dealing with the two of you all weekend." she said with a laugh.

Danny stormed over to the car, well as much as someone with a neck brace and a cane could storm. He walked to Steve's window and motioned for him to open it. He had been expecting to get reamed a new one from the way that Steve had talked to Rachel, but NO, instead she was heading up the Steve McGarret Get Well committee.

"MY ex-wife would like to know if you need anything. She is very concerned with YOUR well being and wants to make sure that YOU are ok." he said with emphasis. "MY ex-wife would like to know if you would like a cup of tea." he said.

Steve was trying his hardest not to laugh. Laughing right now could be very bad. Chin was smirking behind his hand, but luckily Danny was so focused on Steve that he hadn't noticed. Steve actually would have loved to get out to stretch and maybe to grab some ice for his throbbing joints, but there was no way that could happen now. Danny would completely go ape shit if he played into Rachel's hands now. Instead he said, "Please tell her thank you, but I am fine." he said trying to keep his face neutral.

Rachel wasn't sure that she trusted Danny to properly relay the message so she walked up to the car. She talked in through the open window. "Detective Kelly, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Please call me Chin. I feel like I already know you." he said.

"Well whatever Danny has said about me I can assure you is an exaggeration." she said with a dismissive smile.

She turned her attention to Steve. "I heard that you came into some bad luck. Are you sure that you are alright? Do you need anything?"

"Thank you very much for the offer, but I am fine." Steve said with an appreciative smile as he started to pull himself from the car. Steve was too much of a gentleman and had too much time in the military to speak to a lady sitting down while she was standing up, even if he was injured. She offered him her arm, but he waved it away. Danny handed him the cane that Grace had decorated. Steve leaned against the car to support himself.

"It is so nice of you to use the cane that Grace decorated for you." she said keeping the giggle to herself at seeing the military man using a cane with cute girly stickers all over it.

"Of course" he replied with a smile. He figured that there was no harm in keeping Rachel on his good side. He figured he never knew when that could come in handy.

She looked him up and down. "I do hope that you will take care of yourself and hope that you have a speedy recovery."

"Thank you. I am lucky I have such a great team that has my back...We have each other's backs." he said.

"Well I can certainly see that." Rachel said.

Then she turned and said to Danny "Take care of him, and yourself. I will see you next weekend when you come to pick Grace up. I hope that you won't have any of those extra accessories by then." she added and gave him a quick hug and then went to join Grace in the house. Although he had been trying to hide it, Rachel had seen the pain in Steve's eyes and in the lines by his mouth. She wasn't going to add to his discomfort by watching him. She wanted to let him have his dignity. She shut the door behind her, but peered out through the side window a few moments later to make sure that they had both gotten back in the car alright.

"Danny, would it be alright if I sat in the back?" he said. The artificial smile gone from his face and an unreadable one now resided there.

"Why are you offering? I expected jokes about how I belong back there because I have short legs. Why would you want to volunteer to be back there? What are you going for? Do you want Rachel to think that I'm making you sit back there?" he asked.

Steve didn't respond. Instead he just headed for the back of the car behind Danny.

Danny got in the front of the car, fastened his seat belt and settled in. He was amazed that he had survived the entire conversation with Rachel and was relatively no worse pain wise for it. He was glad that he had decided to keep the brace on. Then he decided he needed to figure out what was up with Steve's sudden seat change request.

"Seriously, what gives McGarrett?" Why do you want to sit in the back. There's much less leg room back there." Danny said curiously.

Steve didn't answer.

"Steve? Hey Steve man are you OK?" Danny asked now feeling guilty for taking out his frustration on him. He was annoyed with Rachel. It really didn't have anything to do with Steve.

"We've just been gone a little longer than I had anticipated." he said to the car floor.

Then Danny saw Steve lift his long leg onto the length of the seat and gently put his foot down. Then Steve leaned back against the door and cradled his arm to his body. Then it all made sense. Steve needed to elevate his leg. Danny's little conversation with Rachel in the driveway had definitely been longer than he had anticipated and Steve's leg had been down that entire time. He was probably in agony. Not that he would let on. Especially not when Danny was upset.

He didn't have time to wallow in his guilt though as he saw something run in the road right in front of Chin's SUV...


	34. Chapter 34

Hope that you enjoy this...and now I have it out of my system...thanks for sticking with me while I indulged this little plot bunny that took over. We're almost done soon...

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><p>Danny screamed, "Watch out" and gestured toward the street. He positioned his head as safely as he could against the seat and tried to brace himself for impact relaxing as much as he could in the split second that he had.<p>

Luckily, Chin had seen the dog as well. He swerved hard onto the shoulder of the road. Thankfully for the team, Chin was a good driver and managed to keep a level head. If nothing else, Chin always managed to keep his emotions in check. He safely manuevered the car to the side of the road without incident. Chin slowed the car to a stop and the dog bolted unharmed the rest of the way across the road and disappeared into the trees. He looked at Danny.

"I'm sorry guys, is everyone OK?" Chin asked his friend as he looked at him with worry evident in his face.

Danny rubbed his neck and tried to move it the little that the brace would allow. Seemed OK. Hurt, but not anymore than before. Then he ran his hands to his knee. It didn't feel great and was a little angrier than before. He must have really braced more with his lower body than he thought, but it didn't hurt so bad that he thought he needed to get it checked or that he did more damage to it. "Yeah, brah, I seem OK more or less. Tweaked the knee a little I think, but should be fine." he said as he was rubbing at it. "What about you? Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, just sorry had to do that to you guys." he said apologetically.

They heard a groan coming from the back seat.

"Damn! Steve! Steve are you OK?" Danny didn't get any answer. He couldn't turn his head to see Steve since he was directly behind him so he unbuckled and rushed out of the car, knee pain and cane forgotten. He yelled to Chin to unlock Steve's door. He stuck his arm in to brace Steve so he wouldn't fall out as he opened the door. He got a groan from Steve in response. "Steve! Steve! Talk to me. What's the matter? Where are you hurt?" he asked. Danny was in a full panic now.

Steve had his eyes clenched shut. He was cradling his left arm and had his right arm around his left injured elbow protecting it from being touched. He was leaning his body to the left into the soft leather of the back seat protecting his left arm from further danger. The pressure didn't feel great on his arm, but the alternative chance of bumping his elbow or someone else bumping into it were a harsher option as he had found out. Danny tried to soothe him by rubbing his back, but that caused Steve to round his back and curl further into himself while panting.

"Crap, I forgot about your bruises. Sorry man. Didn't mean to hurt you. Is it your back? Did you hurt your back?" he asked. He tried to soothe him. He rubbed his uninjured arm or at least he hoped it was still uninjured.

Steve was taking deep breaths trying to pull himself together. He still hadn't opened his eyes and was still curled up on himself. Chin had pulled Danny's front seat all the way forward and folded it as close to the dash as he could to give Danny as much room as he could to get to Steve. It didn't fold much out of the way, but it would give them some room to breathe. He walked around and did the same to his driver seat. He told Danny he would stay behind Steve and that he should go around front and see if he could get him to open his eyes.

"Good idea." Danny said as he walked around to the other side of the car. He cautiously opened the door. Steve's feet were on the floor, well his right foot was. His left injured ankle was tangled in the seat belt from the other seat and was somehow wedged under the seat slightly. Danny cautiously untangled it. He looked for further injury. It was definitely swollen, it was warm and it was bruised. He hadn't really gotten a good look at it since the other day so he didn't know how much of it was new. Steve was wincing as he touched the joint. He held the injured ankle as he scooted as close to Steve as he could and positioned himself so that he could see Steve without having to move his neck too much, but damned if this wasn't a painful position for his knee. He did the best he could to push the pain back knowing that Steve was in worse shape and needed him. They were face to face with each man faced so they were looking out the opposite window. He gently laid Steve's leg on the seat next to him, but close to the back of the seat while he was more perched at the edge. He put his hand on his partner's uninjured hand and tried to get him to look at him.

"Hey Steve, it's me Danny. I need you to open your eyes for me, OK. I need to make sure you're OK." he said.

Steve blinked his eyes and then he opened them and looked at Danny. He looked him right in the eyes. Steve had actually done what Danny had asked for. He should have been shouting from the rooftops with excitement, but instead his breath hitched and he felt like someone had sucker-punched him. Steve may be able to hide his pain from some people, but not Danny. His eyes revealed everything and Danny was the master of reading Steve's expressions. This expression made Danny want to throw up. Steve was in pain and a lot of it. What Danny wouldn't give to see aneurysm face right now. Anything else would be better than the look in Steve's eyes right now. He needed to figure out what was wrong and quickly. He couldn't let his friend stay like this.

"Steve, I know I am a good detective, but I need some help here. What's the matter? Where are you hurt? Talk to me, gesture, point...something. Help me out here. Not exactly in the most comfortable position for my knee and if you don't give me something to work with, I just might have a stroke soon." Danny said frantically.

The desperateness in Danny's voice or the idea that Danny would suffer from something he did was enough to get Steve to speak. "Elbow" he let out as more than a pained whisper as he closed his eyes again.

"Damn. Can I take a peek Steve?" Steve didn't answer or open his eyes.

"What happened? Danny asked again."

"Hit it...on the door...when we...swerved... my back too" Steve stammered trying to help Danny understand what happened. His voice was so soft Chin couldn't even hear him and he was right behind him. Danny had been able to make it out since he was looking right at him and had the advantage of being able to see his lips move.

Danny was trying to process the information when he heard Steve again.

"Hospital." Was the next thing out of Steve's mouth.

This he said a little louder and Chin heard. He looked at Danny. Danny nodded to Chin. Chin carefully settled Steve against the back of the seat and shut the door. Steve was in agony with the slightest movement. Chin cringed with every whimper that came out of Steve. He then went around and shut Danny's door. He climbed in the driver's seat and started the car. They were at the hospital within a few minutes.

Danny had stayed in the back seat with Steve. Danny had his hand on Steve's leg trying to calm him. Steve reached forward when they hit a bump and grabbed Danny's shirt. He was clutching to his friend. He needed the physical contact. It was as if he was asking Danny to help him. It was breaking Danny's heart. Steve's head was wet with sweat and his eyes red and wet with unshed tears.

"It's OK Steve. You are going to be OK. I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere. We're on our way to the hospital. You are going to be OK." Danny just kept saying to him while he kept his hand rubbed Steve's leg to make sure he knew that he was there for him. Both Danny and Chin knew the pain Steve must be in to ask to go to the hospital.

Finally they did arrive and Chin helped Steve into the awaiting wheelchair. Steve was wheeled away for x-rays. Danny tried to pace, but his knee was killing him and forcing him to sit still in the chair and elevate it. He ignored it trying to think of Steve and hope that he was OK. Chin had picked up on his pain earlier when he had not only had to help Steve, but also Danny out of the car. Danny had also needed a little assistance walking initially. Chin had gotten Danny some ice for his knee as well as he gave him one of his pain pills. Chin had brought along a dose for each one of the partners just in case. Chin was known for thinking about those sort of details and being prepared. They ended up having to slightly sedate Steve to do the x-rays and tests, but the doctor came out to talk to them.

"Commander McGarrett is asking for someone named Danno?" the doctor asked questioningly.

Danny rubbed his hands over his face and said, "Yeah, that's me. Don't ask." He waved the questioning look away and gestured that the doctor should proceed.

The doctor explained that Steve would be out in a little bit, they were just finishing up with him, but that he would need to be released to someone's care. He explained that Steve had aggravated his elbow, but there was no fracture and no repeat of the dislocation. The doctor explained that although extremely painful, it would not prevent Steve from making a full recovery. He would just have to be sure to completely rest the arm, keep it iced and elevated. He said that his back had also acquired a few new bruises compared with the notes from Steve's prior admission the other night and was sure to be quite sore. Then there was the ankle. That as well had been aggravated from being tangled up in the seatbelt and being jammed into the seat. The ankle was severely swollen, but it appeared as though the brace had saved it from any further injury, but it had suffered a trauma regardless and therefore the original injury would be expected to be more painful and the doctor recommended Steve stay off of his foot and used the cane and have assistance for a little while.

"Is that it? Is he free to go when they bring him out? He's going to want to leave. He hates hospitals...No offense" Danny added as both he and Chin breathed a sigh of relief that although in more pain, Steve hadn't been more injured.

"Yes, just promise me that we won't be seeing him back here for a while. I am going to have to start giving my staff combat pay if they have to deal with Commander McGarrett on any more of a regular basis. " he said only partially kidding.

Steve was wheeled out sometime later looking tired, but much more Steve like then the frightened shell of himself that they had witnessed earlier.

Chin loaded him back into the car and headed for home. He was driving slowly and cautiously. Although it had been unavoidable, Chin was NOT going to be responsible for injuring either of the men again. Danny was again sitting in the back seat with Steve. This time he was on his own side of the car though and he had Steve's foot in his lap on a pillow resting on his good knee. Steve was leaning against the door again. This time Chin had thought ahead and padded the door to prevent any further chance of injury. So now Steve was leaning back against a pillow. He had the back of his head resting on the window and he also had a pillow elevating his arm that wrapped around the back of his arm to further protect the elbow. Steve then had his arm protected by the soft back of the seat. Chin wasn't taking any chances this time. He would rather go overboard then be responsible for Steve having even a thought of more pain. Chin stopped at the pharmacy to pick up the things that they would need and then they headed home.

Chin phoned Kono on the way to update her on what had happened. Once she knew everyone was relatively ok, she laughed. It wasn't really funny, but this weekend had been kind of crazy. Luckily the guys were both asleep in the back seat. She was going to meet him at Steve's house.


	35. Chapter 35

I want to thank all of you who are still reading and reviewing this story and all of you who have put out alerts and favorites. You guys make it all worth while. You are the ones who make it worth writing. You keep me going. I have been trying to answer some of your reviews. If I didn't get to yours, I thank you immensely...I don't always have a lot of time and what time I do have, I use it to write. I do appreciate them and they do make a difference. Thank you very much...You guys are great.

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><p>Kono met the guys back at Steve's house. She pulled up as Chin was getting out of his car. She walked over to meet him. They looked in the backseat and she had to smile. Then she had to take a picture. She was sure that at some point having a picture of the two of them cuddled up in the backseat the way they were would work to her advantage. She laughed when she thought how much Steve would really think that she was sneaky after this.<p>

"Alright, so what's the plan?" she asked.

"Well Danny was moving on his own for the most part. I think that his knee might be a little worse, but he had his meds. He was so worried about Steve though, that I don't think he was really worried about himself. No damage to the neck that has surfaced so far. He, however, is technically under Steve's leg. I don't think it matters who wakes up first. I'm pretty sure it's a package deal. Let's see how it goes. You help Danny into the house while I get Steve situated and ready to go in. He was pretty out of it and might be harder to wrangle." Chin said.

"Might be? Did they let you have some of those drugs too cuz?" she asked playfully.

"Ha ha, let's get these guys inside." he said not amused by his cousin's attempt at humor.

They opened up the door closest to Danny and tapped him gently on the shoulder. "Hey brah, it's time to wake up. We're at Steve's house." Chin said calmly.

Danny rubbed his eyes and looked at his watch. "Man, where did the day go?" he asked.

"Well the two of you slept a lot of it away." Chin smirked.

"Let's see if we can get you inside without waking Steve up" Kono said.

"Too late" came from the sleepy Steve followed shortly by a groan.

Danny lifted Steve's leg off of him which earned him a hiss of pain from Steve.

"Sorry. I just need to get your giant leg off me so that I could get inside." Danny explained gesturing at Steve's leg.

"All you had to do was ask." Steve snapped.

Danny started to swing his leg over. He was mentally preparing a smart-ass comeback. He glanced at Steve and thought again. Steve looked miserable. His face was distorted with pain. He was squirming against the door, his back obviously bothering him. Danny scooted forward and stood up fully on his left leg. Kono and Chin were at his side waiting to offer assistance. Kono handed him his cane. He put weight on his injured knee and he swore loudly as he felt his knee buckle and he started to collapse. His angry knee was not ready to have that amount of weight on it now that all the adrenaline had worn off and he was really feeling the pain. The extra irritation from the car swerving, the awkward position while talking to Steve and then the time sitting around waiting for Steve to get checked out had not agreed with it. Luckily, Chin and Kono were ready for him and they both managed to get his arms around them and helped steady him before he faltered too much.

Steve gasped as he watched Danny collapse and breathed a sigh of relief as he saw that Chin and Kono had it under control. He cursed himself for not being stronger and not only not being there for Danny, but for needing help himself. He was supposed to be a SEAL damn it. What would his fellow SEALs and his commanding officers think of him now? He was getting soft and he knew it. He was pretty disgusted with himself at the moment. He looked himself over. He was a mess. He was a disgrace as far as being the leader of the exclusive task force went. He had managed to hurt his partner, hurt himself and ruin the weekend for the rest of his team. He really screwed up this time.

Chin and Kono went one little step at a time until Danny's knee loosened up a little and was able to take some weight on it. They helped him basically hop up the steps, helped him in and out of the bathroom and then got him settled into the recliner chair. It was not time for bed yet and since he had just woken up from napping and still needed to eat they decided that the chair was better than bed.

Chin went to the car to help Steve while Kono stayed and got Danny comfortable. She got the ice for his knee as well as a new ACE wrap bandage. She applied the wrap around his knee trying to be gentle, but she winced when the movement of his knee made him groan out loud and clench his fists. She put pillows under his knee and reclined the chair. Then she got the heating pad and took his neck brace off and wrapped the heating pad around his neck. He gently moved his neck trying to loosen it up and was pleasantly surprised that there were no shooting pains that accompanied the movements, just a deep aching. Kono knew he was in some pain though and went behind him to give him a quick massage. Danny was very appreciative. He was surprised how strong Kono's small hands were. He shouldn't have been since he knew full well that she was a worthy opponent for any of the suspects that they chased down.

Chin tried to help Steve out of the car and wished he could forget the pained look on his face or the moans of agony that Steve was fighting so hard to keep silent that escaped his lips with the slightest movement. It took what felt like forever to get him to the open doorway and for him to catch his breath. They were waiting for Kono when she emerged from the doorway of the house. She took one look at Steve and knew things weren't good. He was pale and he was sweating and starting to shake slightly.

She approached the car. It was going to be a little harder to help Steve because they needed to be careful of Steve's arm and the bruises on his back. They got him to the edge of the car and were waiting for him to be able to lower his ankle. He finally did it and he swayed slightly before returning to the stoic blank expression reminiscent of Steve when five-0 was initially formed. He didn't argue with the help because as disappointed as he was with himself, he wasn't reckless. He knew his body and he knew his limits. There was no way he was going to be able to get anywhere without the assistance of his teammates. Kono handed him his vividly decorated cane and tried to help him to his feet. They were ready for a collapse similar to that of Danny a few minutes ago, but Steve managed to stay upright. They both stayed close. Chin had Steve's arm around his shoulder and pulled him over to him trying to take as much of his weight as he could.

It was a painstakingly slow process, but eventually they made it in the house. They repeated the process of to and from the bathroom that they had just done with Danny. Then they settled Steve on the couch. Chin and Kono both knew they wouldn't be erasing his pained expression or moans from their memories any time soon. It was so out of character to see Steve how pain. His ankle and arm were elevated with ice on them and a pillow was behind his back so that there was minimal pressure on it. Steve was left panting for breath barely staving off the blackness that was trying to pull him under. There wasn't much more that they could do and one look at Danny told them that he wanted a few minutes alone with his partner. Danny waved Kono over and she helped him lower the chair from the reclined position very slowly and carefully.

Kono went to talk to Chin and figure out dinner. They ordered pizza to be delivered and went back to the other room only to find Steve and Danny in an intense conversation and they stepped back out. The partners needed to work things out among themselves.

"Danny, how are you doing?" Steve asked his voice dripping with concern and guilt and his works coming with great effort from the pain. The fact that his face was also betraying all of his emotions to Danny didn't help either.

"Steve, this is not your fault. It's not Chin's fault either. Shit just happens sometimes and it's nobody's fault. Don't you dare beat yourself up about this or I will have to have Kono kick your ass. She just gave me a massage and I would definitely think twice about messing with those hands." Danny said trying to lighten the mood and hoping to ease the expression on Steve's face.

"Yeah, sure Danny. You didn' t answer my question though." Steve wasn't in the mood to argue really. He felt bad about not being able to take care of his partner. If that had been the case, Steve would have dropped Grace off as he had picked her up and Danny wouldn't have even been in the car most likely. He knew that there was an element of truth in what Danny was saying though. He just hurt and the pain was clouding his judgement.

"Fine Steven. My knee hurts. I must have twisted it wrong or something. I don't know. I just know it hurts, but I also know it's nothing horrible and I will live." Danny said plainly.

"You almost collapsed!" Steve said after he took a few breaths to fight back the pain.

"I told you, my knee hurt! That's it. I was able to put weight on it after a few minutes. Just needed to warm up." Danny explained as though it was a perfectly normal every day occurrence for people to almost take a nose-dive when they were just getting out of the car.

"How's your neck?" Steve continued needing to know the full extent of Danny's pain and injuries.

"Surprisingly OK. It still aches, but I was able to move it a little earlier and after Kono gave me a massage I was feeling alright. The heat helps too" he said pointing to the obvious heating pad on his neck.

"Dare I ask how you are doing Rambo? Oh and before you answer, I am way too tired for the lie that you are about to tell me so let's save both of us some time and energy and just go with the truth on the first round, OK?" Danny said knowing full well that there was no way that Steve was going to come clean even though his pain was obvious to anyone with working eyes.

"Doesn't matter really. I messed up and I'm going to be a burden to everyone. I deserve it." Steve said with a tone that sent off alarms and bells all through Danny's body. He had seen Steve feel guilty before. He had seen him sad. He had seen him in pain, but he had never seen him like this. Danny was worried. He disconnected the heating pad, he re-applied his neck brace and he grabbed his cane. He stood with a lot of effort and made it the few steps to the couch. He sat on the edge of the couch near Steve much like they had sat in the car earlier. He made Steve look up to meet his eyes. "Steve, it does matter. It matters to me. It matters to them too." he said as he gestured to their teammates in the kitchen.

"What is going through that SEAL brain of yours?" he said looking into his eyes. "What the hell do you mean you deserve it? No one deserves to be in pain Steve." Danny explained.

"I let you down, I let Grace and Kono and Chin down. I let myself down. I failed. Not only can't I help you, I need help." he said defeated.

Danny realized that was not something that Steve was familiar with. He had an honorable naval career and there were many people who would speak fondly of all that Steve had done while in uniform. Steve was used to being responsible for people, not being the one that others had to be responsible for. He had saved fellow men while in duty. This was a whole new game for Steve. They hadn't really talked while Grace was there. Danny should have known better than to think that Steve would do anything less than give 200% for Grace. Danny knew that with the new pain Steve was in that he was feeling pretty helpless. It was one thing for Steve to ask Grace for help, but to have to actually ask his team was another thing all together. This was not good. This had to stop. He was just about to let Steve have it when they were interrupted by a knock on the door.

Everyone looked at each other inquiring who was expecting company. They all shrugged their shoulders. Chin went to the door to answer it.

_It is really late here, back to work tomorrow and lots of work waiting. Wanted to get this out since don't know if I will be able to post tomorrow. Hope you enjoy and I apologize for any mistakes. Please review..._


	36. Chapter 36

Alright remember this takes place before the finale so we don't know all that jazz yet. Sorry this took so long. End of school year brings all sorts of chaos around the house...I'll do my best with the updates. Can't promise everyday anymore...but I will keep it up.

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><p>Chin answers the door. It is the governor. He invites her in and she walks inside and asks immediately about Steve.<p>

Steve and Danny hear her voice from the other room. Steve shoots Danny a look of panic. Danny knows that Steve would never want the governor to see him like this. He immediately stands up grabs the blanket and throws it over Steve, then he shoots Steve a look that tells him he has it covered and he gets up as quickly as he can and tries to head the governor off to give Steve a few minutes to make himself more presentable. Steve straightens up and wipes his hand across his face hoping to give himself some color. He lowers his foot muffling the agony that has erupted from the sudden rush of blood to the extremity, covers his legs with a blanket, takes the pillow out from behind his back and eases himself back onto the couch. He does his best to try to sit up straight and not show the ridiculous amount of pain that he truly is in. He knows that he can't hide the arm, so he elevates it on a pillow. If he can't hide it, he figures, he might as well have it be as comfortable as he can so it's not contributing to the agony that he is trying to hide.

He can hear Danny in the other room saying "Hello governor. Nice to see you."

"I wish it were for a better reason" she said sternly. "How are you feeling Danny?" she asked her voice much softer and caring now.

"Me? I'm doing fine. I'll be down a while still with the knee, but the neck seems to be a little better each day. Thanks for asking." he said.

"I always hate to hear when one of my elite is injured." she said. She places her arm on his shoulder and gives him a squeeze. "Glad to hear that you are feeling better though and it's a good thing too I guess." she said. "May I see Steven?" she asks.

Danny tries to nonchalantly take a quick glance into the other room to see how Steve is, but there is no such thing as a quick glance at anything when you have a neck injury.

Steve has heard from the other room and calls out "Come on in Governor." with forced cheer in his voice.

She sits down carefully on the couch next to him and asks how he is. Her eyes are full of concern. She is looking him up and down and is saddened by what she sees.

"Been better, but I will be fine" he says as he tries to minimize his pain.

"Well that's good to know and it will make me feel less guilty about yelling at you." she said with the tone that a mother would use when scolding a child.

"Why is it that I had to hear that you were in the hospital not once, but twice from a stranger at the hospital? Why didn't you or one of the teammates call me? Just because you had some time off to help Danny doesn't mean that I don't need to know what is happening with the team." she explained.

"I'm sorry. It's my fault. I let you down. I should have called sooner, but it was a busy weekend." he tries to rationalize.

"That is exactly my point. I got the first call that you had hurt your arm and had some other minor injuries and was told that it wasn't that serious. The doctor at the hospital thought would be back on feet in a week or two. I figured I'd let you lick your wounds in peace and stop by today. Now today is Sunday and I get another call that you were in a car accident. They said that you were alright, but had to be medicated for severe pain." she said.

She took a breath for a minute before continuting. "So why when I asked you about your pain are you are telling me that you are fine? If you were fine we both know that you would be nowhere near a hospital."

She pauses again as though she is expecting Steve to say something in his defense. "In addition to hurting your arm, the hospital doctor said you have a severely sprained ankle and extensive bruising on your back. I would wager a bet that would account for the stiff way that you are sitting and the fact that your foot is barely touching the ground." she said with the hint of a smirk knowing that she was right and that she had caught him.

"How about you stop pretending and you lay down on the couch and get comfortable and I will go and sit over there in the chair and you can tell me the whole long story about how 2 of my best men have become simultaneously injured while not in the line of duty?" she said with a wink.

Steve settles himself on the couch with sheepish grin because was found out. He should know better than to lie to her as she is almost a mother figure to him. Kono helps him elevate his arm and his ankle and puts the ice packs on him before covering him again with the blanket to his waist.

The governor asks "Do Kono and Chin need time off too to help the two of you? You were supposed to be watching Danny, but now who is going to watch the two of you?"

Steve swallows the guilt that washes over him and Danny sighs to himself knowing full well the emotional ramifications of that question to Steve's psyche.

Steve says "No we will be fine and if we run into any trouble we can call our teammates."

Steve fills her in on the version of events that he is comfortable with her knowing. She has a good-hearted laugh with them and then orders Steve off duty for a minimum of 2 weeks. He is allowed to help via phone, but is not to be in the field under any circumstances and shouldn't be in the office except to visit when feeling better.

Then she looks at Danny. "I'm glad that you are getting better, and that your neck has been improving slowly, but based on the way you are walking I don't think that your knee fared as well." she said. Danny looked regretfully at Chin and saw the guilted expression that he feared he would find.

"Really, I know my knee. It aches from the excitement today, but I don't think there was any further injury. I've been dealing with this since high school." Danny says.

"Well either way, you are going to an orthopedic doctor tomorrow to make sure that it is as you say." the governor says.

"That's really not necessary governor." Danny argues.

"It's not negotiable Detective Williams. I have the appointment set up already and you will be there, and yes, that is an order." she says. "Also you will both have clean bills of health before returning to full duty. I don't want to risk you getting hurt more by coming back too soon." She then tells Danny he isn't allowed back in the office either and that Chin and Kono will continue to assist HPD with her full backing and support.

They all say their goodbyes and the governor again expresses her wishes that they feel better. She then warns "the next time any of you are injured that I had better hear it from one of you and not from the hospital." They all nod their understanding. She emphasizes this to Steve especially since he is the leader of the task force.

"I am tired of getting phone calls from strangers who act like they know my team when they wind up in the hospital." she said as she gets up to walk to the door.

Steve moves to get up to say goodbye and bites his lip and hisses in pain. She laughs and says "Really Steve, we don't need the formality. This is your home not the naval base. I would not expect anyone who was injured to get up and be in pain just to say goodbye to me, not even a navy man" she reiterated. "Now lay back and rest and let your friends take care of you for a change."

Steve nods his head and lays back down gritting his teeth and clenching his fist under the blanket. He closes his eyes and puts the walls back up around his emotions. He had just put on his public relations act for the governor to make things look good and A-OK. The governor thinks that she knows Steve, but doesn't know him as well as she thinks.

Chin and Kono walk the governor out and when they come back in, it is eerily quiet. They go into the other room to check on the guys.

Kono and Chin have decided that they are going to take turns staying with the guys. Kono was there last night so Chin is going to take tonight. He leaves to go home and get his things. Kono gives them their medication as she can see that they are both hurting. Steve is actually starting to shake a little as he fights back the pain coursing through his body. The drugs that they gave him in the hospital have long since worn off and the pain is intense with every slight movement he makes.

Kono says that she is going to clean up around the house and do some laundry. The lawn also needs to be mowed. Usually Steve takes care of that first thing on the weekend, but he hadn't been able to today so Kono decides to do it. She knows that it will bother Steve if it doesn't get done and he can't do it. She hasn't had much exercise this weekend and doesn't mind. She promises to check in on the boys and keep her phone on her, and she will check it periodically since she might not hear it over the mower. She puts some wash in then heads outside.

Steve turns away from Danny and hopes he isn't going to start the conversation back up now that Kono and Chin aren't around. Danny looks at Steve. He wants to continue their conversation, but isn't sure that now is the time. Steve's pain meds haven't kicked in yet and Danny can see that he is clearly still in pain. He runs his hands through his hair. He can feel a headache starting. He decides he doesn't need to add to it or Steve's pain. He decides to wait a little while and that Steve needs a distraction more than anything right now. He limps into the other room and pulls out his phone to make a few calls.


	37. Chapter 37

Please Read and review. I hope that you guys like it. I wanted to get it out before the weekend. I hope to get another chapter out sometime over the weekend...

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><p>He wasn't sure that he should make this call, but decides to anyway. He looks through his contacts to find the number that he had stored in there for an emergency. He dials and waits for an answer.<p>

"Hello. This is Detective Danny Williams. I'm Steve's partner." he says.

"Sure. How are you Danny? Oh my god. Is everything OK?Is Steve OK? He's not..." she starts.

"No, no Steve is fine. Well mostly...sort of. That's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about Lieutenant Rollins." he started.

"Please, call me Cat." she said "As much as Steve talks about you, I feel like I know you already." she laughs.

Danny blushed and had to smile. He could only imagine the things that Steve had told her. Steve didn't talk about Cat that much, but Danny knows that he really does care about her and he can tell that those feelings are returned.

"So, you said that Steve is OK?" she restated.

"Well, yes and no." he said.

"He was in an accident. Well actually two." he started. This was not going the way he had imagined. "Do you have a few minutes to talk? This is sort of a long story." he said.

"I don't have that long. Maybe you could give me the abbreviated version." she suggested remembering how Steve had told her how long-winded Danny could be when he was upset or in a rant.

Danny explained the past weekend to her and ended with his latest situation and the pain that Steve was in and the indifference. He wasn't sure that Steve would want him tod be sharing all of this with her, but right now he actually wouldn't care if Steve was yelling at him, it would be better than the lack of emotion that he was showing.

"I can understand how this would be hard for him. He is used to being a leader. He is not comfortable with needing or relying on other people, especially not emotionally. I know for a fact that he trusts you with his life, but this is different. He shut that vulnerable part of him down after his mother died I think. Then after his father was killed, he just stuffed it down farther. He can open up at times and I know that he does with you and a little with me, but I don't know if it is enough anymore. I am so far away a lot of time and we don't see each other that often." she explained with regret evident in her voice.

Danny felt bad calling her. She was far away and knowing that Steve was in the shape he was while there was nothing that she could do from where she was must be awful for her. He was right here and felt useless. "What do I do? How do I help him with this? Have you ever seen him like this before?" Danny asked feeling the ache in his head growing.

"I can't tell you much because it is..." she started

"Yeah, yeah I know, it's classified." Danny finished for her obviously annoyed.

"I can say he has been injured before. Not usually too bad though. It was always his need to help others who were hurt worse than him that got him through it." she explained.

"Even the times when he was injured pretty badly, he still managed to be there for his teammates and made sure that they were taken care of. It never mattered to him how much pain it meant for him. He was usually the least injured or at least always made it out to be that way anyway." she explained.

"Yeah that sounds like our super SEAL." Danny said.

"Now that he can't help you or himself, he's lost and feels as though he has failed. He has never been as close to a team as he is with you guys so this is hitting him even harder." she said with a sigh. She paused for a minute before continuing.

"You need to find some way for him to feel like he is leading again and responsible for something. He needs control, he thrives on it and right now he has lost all control. He needs a purpose again. He can't work and he feels like he has let everyone down. I can't tell you exactly what will work, but think about what I've said and hopefully that will help you." she said wishing she knew exactly what they should do.

"I am so glad that you called and I am glad that Steve is OK. He will be OK Danny. He is tough. He just needs a little help from his friends right now. Just help him find a purpose again and everything will work out. Now that I know that you have my number, I want you to use it. Call me and keep me posted. I'm not due back for a while unfortunately. Please send Steve my love. And thanks for calling Danny. It means a lot to me that you would call me for advice. Steve really is lucky to have you guys watching over him." she said her voice exuding sincerity.

"No problem Cat, we're his ohana. It's what we do. I'll keep you posted." he said then told her goodbye and disconnected the call. He was thankful that Steve did have someone else in his life that cared about him.

He hung up took a deep breath and tried to figure out what he was going to do as he rubbed his temples. What Cat had said made sense, but that didn't exactly help him know what to do or how to do it. He wanted nothing more than to just go to bed, but right now he had to check on Steve.

Steve was still laying on the couch, but now he was sleeping. Danny sighed. He went into the other room to make another call, but as he did Kono walked through the door. She wasn't alone.

"Hey, I was just about to call you Shave Ice." Danny said. He had been hoping to get as many of Steve's allies to come an visit over the next few days to keep him in better spirits, even if it was an act and only lasted for the time that they were with him. It was something and until he could think of something else it was all he had.

"Jersey, you were about to call me? What for brah?" he said.

Danny said, "I was hoping you'd come visit Steve, but I guess you saved me the call."

Kamekona still had a dish in his hands. He had cooked for Steve. Something with spam in it no doubt. He thanked him and then carried it into the kitchen and put it in the fridge knowing that none of them would be touching it. It was the thought that mattered though. The big guy was definitely part of their extended ohana.

Steve woke up at the sound of the big guy's voice. Again the fake-happy Steve emerged. He chatted with Kamekona for a little while. Kamekona said how boring the beach had become without his two favorite detectives creating action on it.

They sat around and talked for a while before Kamekona left. Kono walked him out and asked him to check on the boys when he could. He said he'd see what he could do.

She went back in to see if the guys wanted dinner.

Neither one was very hungry. She had fixed a big pot of her grandmother's secret recipe soup and left it to simmer on the stove. It wasn't quite done yet. Chin could take care of it when he got back. Instead she made them quick sandwiches and went upstairs to get things ready up there. Their beds were made and pjs located.

Chin came back just in time to help Kono get the guys ready for bed. Kono said her goodbyes and Chin took over. She said she'd be back in the morning to help with getting Danny to the doctor about his knee.

The agreement Kono and Chin made with Danny and Steve was they were not allowed to go up or down the stairs on their own. Chin or Kono will take turns spending the night and help them up the stairs at night and then down the stairs in the morning before going to work for the next little while since neither is steady enough on their feet and they had both had incidents involving the stairs. Steve and Danny protested, but the cousins held strong and told them they didn't have a choice. They said it was either this or they were going to take turns staying home with them. Steve and Danny eventually reluctantly agreed.

Chin started with Steve. He was the more injured and more difficult usually. However, tonight Steve didn't give Chin any problems. He barely said a word. The only sounds coming out of his mouth were the cries of pain that he just couldn't keep in. They made it up the stairs one step at a time. Slowly and carefully, Steve readily leaning on Chin and letting him take most of his weight. Once they got upstairs, Steve used the bathroom and then Chin helped him to bed. Steve sat at the edge of the bed while Chin basically undressed him. Steve helped when he could, but he certainly didn't make any attempts to stop Chin or argue that he didn't need the help. Chin winced when he was taking Steve's shirt off and saw the bruises and the agony etched in his stoic face from moving his arm to get his shirt off. Steve then took his medication without so much as a word or a face of argument. Finally, Steve was in bed and situated with his injuries elevated the best that he could.

"Thanks Chin." Steve said emotionless.

"Night boss. Feel better. I'll be just down the hall. Holler or call me if you need anything. Your phone is right on the table next to you." Chin said sadly. It was concerning him how much Steve was withdrawing. He shut the door leaving it open a little so he could hear Steve if he needed him.

Chin then went to help Danny upstairs. Danny was slow, but steadier than Steve had been. He needed less support more just guidance. He was still favoring his knee and Chin could only imagine the pain behind the calm face that Danny had put on. He helped Danny get ready for bed. Really he just needed help with his pants. He got him situated in bed and propped him with pillows supporting his neck. Danny asked Chin for the heating pad and for some ice for his knee. He took his medication as well hoping that it would help with his headache. He was sure that the tension he was feeling couldn't be good for his neck or maybe the tension was from his neck. It had been far too long of a day to try to sort it all out. He hoped that after some sleep things would look better in the morning.

Chin brought Danny the things that he asked for and helped get him comfortable. Then he went to take care of the rest of the locking up of the house so that he could get to sleep. They had to get Danny to the doctor before work so tomorrow morning was going to be hectic as it was. He didn't want to have to add his crankiness into the mix.

Chin headed to Mary's old room to go to sleep. He peeked in on Steve who appeared to be sleeping peacefully or as peaceful as he could under the circumstances. He hoped that Steve woke up in a better mindset tomorrow. Then he checked on Danny. Danny was still awake in his room staring at the ceiling. Chin turned off the heating pad and removed the ice then re-covered him. "Hey man, do you want to talk?" he asked Danny as the blonde detective obviously had something on his mind.

"No, I'm just worried about Steve. I don't like where his head is at right now. I called Catherine for some advice." he admitted.

"I agree. He barely said 2 words to me the entire time I was helping him get ready for bed. What did she say?" Chin asked.

"She said that he feels like he has lost control and that we need to help him find his purpose again. I guess all navy people talk in code." he said with a smile. "I get what she means I guess, I just don't know how I am going to do that? He lives for his missions and he is out of commission for a while..." Danny said discouraged.

"You will come up with something. You know him better than any of us. We will help you however we can, I hope you know that." Chin said.

"Yes, I do and thanks. I'm going to try to get some sleep to get rid of this headache and hopefully tomorrow I will be able to think a little straighter and be able to come up with something. I can't take much more of robo-SEAL." he said.

"I know what you mean. Try to get some sleep man, OK?" Chin said as he partially closed the door and left to try to get some sleep of his own.


	38. Chapter 38

Alright. I finished this story this weekend. It has this chapter plus 3 more. I will be posting them as I finish re-reading them today and tomorrow. Thanks for staying on this crazy journey with me and I hope that you will review. Some are shorter chapters, but I should be updating pretty quickly. Thanks again. You guys make it worth the time with your reviews...

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><p>Danny woke up in the morning thankful for another undisturbed night of sleep. He sat up and realized that his headache had not only not gotten better, but it seemed to have gotten a little worse. He headed to the shower. As long as he could sit when he needed to, he could pretty much take care of it on his own now. He did his neck stretches in the shower and was pleased that his motion seemed to be returning in his neck. He left the brace off after the shower and got dressed. He pulled on shorts since he figured the doctor needed to see his knees and he'd rather not sit there in his boxers like he usually did when he went from work. It took a little work to get the shorts over his right foot since his knee was not bending that well with all the swelling, but he got it done and then easily slipped his other leg in. Putting the sock on that right foot was the only thing that he still was having difficulty with, so he put the other one on and then limped to the door and used his cane to push it open. He handed the sock to Chin who has been standing guard outside the door.<p>

"A little help here please." he said.

"Sure thing brah." Chin replied as he slipped the sock over Danny's foot and watched while Danny then wiggled into his sneakers. "We can go as soon as Kono gets here to stay with Steve." Chin explained.

"You did call her, right? Kono isn't exactly a morning person." Danny reminded him.

"Hey that's my cousin your talking about. Of course I called her. Three times. I stayed on the line the third time until I heard the sink so I knew that she was actually out of bed." he said with a smirk.

"McGarrett isn't going to like having a babysitter." Danny warned.

"Yeah, I know. Kono is stopping for some breakfast and coffee so hopefully that will help soothe his ruffled feathers." Chin said.

"Let's hope so. Although after the way he was acting last night, I'm not so sure I would mind a little lip from Steve right now." Danny said sadly.

'You know, you're right." Chin agreed.

Kono arrived and they left. Steve was still sleeping and Kono didn't plan on being the one that woke him up.

A little while later she heard Steve call for Chin and she ran upstairs. She found Steve sitting on the edge of the bed working on getting his foot on the ground.

"Good morning boss." she said.

"Hey Kono." was his only reply.

"Nature calling?" she guessed.

"Yep" Steve answered.

She helped him stand and then waited until he was a little steadier. He seemed to be moving a little better today. Maybe his pain was getting better she hoped. When he was done he slowly limped back to the doorway and asked, "Shower?"

She looked at him and knew there was no way that she could refuse him. His pain might have been better, but his behavior was not. She helped him with the shower and then she helped him get dressed. The fun banter was missing. Steve was thinking about something else. It was if he was somewhere else almost. Luckily, at that moment she heard Chin and Danny pull up.

"So, what did the doctor say?" Kono asked with concern as soon as they walked in the door. She had gotten Steve downstairs and settled on the couch just as they walked in.

"He said the knee was OK, that I had some fluid on it. He pulled a lot of it off and was running it for some tests to check for infection. He's going to call if he finds anything and if so he'll order me an antibiotic. He figured it was just from the extra irritation though. He said that now that the fluid was gone, it should get better quicker and be a lot less painful. Mind you, he said that right before he jabbed me with a big needle of cortisone to help with the swelling. But hopefully it will feel better soon. He said the shot takes a little while to work." Danny reported.

"Well that's good." Kono said. "So if you are having less pain, why do you look like crap?" she asked.

"Hey. That's harsh!" he said.

"Just speaking the truth." she said with a playful smile.

Danny then threw her a look asking about Steve. She shook her head and Danny sighed. Chin reminded her that they had to go to work. They both made sure the guys would be OK. Danny and Steve were both pretty beat from their mornings and were going to relax and take a little nap. The shower had taken a lot out of Steve and Danny had already walked a marathon, or at least it felt that way to him.

They both slept for about an hour before Steve woke up. Danny was moaning in his sleep. Steve's Danno radar went on alert. He sat up and looked over at his partner hoping it wasn't anything too serious.


	39. Chapter 39

"Danno...Danno?...Hey man are you OK?" Steve asked.

Danny rubbed his hand through his hair as he tried to get his eyes to focus. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Do you think you could take it down about 10 levels though." Danny said while holding his head.

"Headache?" Steve asked already knowing the answer.

"Yeah. When the hell did it get so bright in here? Seriously? Are you pumping in extra sunlight or something? And cold? What do you have the air conditioner set on? Meat locker?" Danny asked.

Steve knew what those comments meant. Danny was never cold. "Danno. I think you are sick. Stay there. I'm coming over." Steve eased himself up and grabbed his cane. He limped over to where Danny was reclined in the chair. As he got closer he saw that Danny's hair was wet with sweat. His eyes were glassy and his cheeks were rosy with what Steve presumed was fever. He moved closer to the blonde detective and sat on the arm of the chair. He rested his cane on the edge and used the back of his hand to feel Danny's forehead. "Damn Danno, you are burning up. I thought you said it was just a headache." Steve said with a huff a little louder than he had intended. He whispered "sorry" when he saw Danny grimace from the loudness of his voice.

"It was just a headache...this morning." Danny said with a sigh.

"Well, it's not anymore." Steve said. Just lay back, I'll be right back. Steve grabbed his cane and got himself to his feet. He started making a mental list of what he needed to do. He went to the bathroom first. He grabbed the thermometer, some face cloths, some cold medicine, Tylenol and anything else that he could think of that might help and threw them in a towel. He then made the towel into a little sack that he could use to carry the items and still manage to hold onto his cane at the same time. He brought it to the other room and set it down on the table near Danny.

He took Danny's temperature and frowned when he saw it was 101.9. Definitely a fever. "Crap." he said out loud. He wondered if he should call Chin or Kono. Then he remembered that they were at work.

_Danny just has a temperature, it's not exactly the end of the world. They won't be able to do much to help him anyway_ he thought to himself. Steve figured he can handle it. _I'm a SEAL. I've dealt with a lot worse than someone being sick. This is Danno. I can do this _he thought to himself. He limped into the kitchen and swallowed some of his pills. The ones that wouldn't knock him out right away, but would take the edge off. He needed to be able to think, but he needed to keep his pain at bay too. He grabbed other things that he thought he would need. He got a ziploc bag and filled it with ice, he grabbed some bottles of water and an empty bowl. He put them in one of his backpacks that was in the kitchen and slung it over his good shoulder.

He brought that stuff to the table, then went back to get some juice, a cup and straw as well as some of the ice packs. He put one in his sling on his arm trying to ease the throbbing and put the other two in the bag. He managed to make it back to Danny.

He sat on the edge of the table and rubbed at his leg. His ankle was sorely retaliating against all of the movement. Steve felt the medicine working, but knew he wasn't going to last much longer on his feet.

"Danny, go lie down on the couch where you can get more comfortable then in this chair." Steve said.

"But Steve, that's for you. Your ankle." Danny argued.

"What? My ankle has been doing just fine this morning. " Steve said as he pointed down at his ankle knowing that Danny wasn't exactly coherent enough to realize the pain that he was in.

"Besides, I didn't just get a big scary shot in it like your knee did." Steve added with a slight upturn at the corners of his mouth.

Danny remembered and instinctively rubbed at his knee and groaned as leaning forward caused his head to throb.

"Now up. No more arguments." Steve said with a slight military tone. The tone made Danny listen even though it was no more than a mere whisper since Steve knew Danny's head hurt.

Steve looked around and was happy to see that Kono hadn't finished putting all the laundry away last night and next to the couch was a basket of laundry that she had been folding. Steve grabbed a sheet out of the basket and threw it on the couch. Normally, it would be smoothed and tucked in to within an inch of its life, but one handed Steve did all that he could just to get it on the couch. He figured it would give Danny a cooler surface to lay on and would be easy to change.

Danny had made his way over by that time. He sat, well more like collapsed onto the couch. He laid down and curled up. Steve made sure to put a pillow under his knee then added an ice pack before covering him with a few blankets.

He emptied the ice into the bowl then added some of the water. He put one of the face cloths in the bowl. Then he wrung it out which he found is harder to do than he imagined with one hand. He took the face cloth and wiped at Steve's face and his neck. He repeated this and finally left the wet cloth over his forehead. Danny made a little shiver at the cold water and then mumbled something incoherent about being cold.

Steve pulled the blanket up over him more. Then he got up and closed all the blinds and turned off all the noise that he could. He re-wet the cloth and continued to wipe at his head and the back of his neck until Danny was asleep.

Then Steve walked over to the chair and sank into it. He propped his own ankle up on a pillow on the coffee table which he had pulled closer, added the last ice pack and closed his eyes. He was asleep pretty quickly, but was sleeping lightly. Years in the SEALs had taught him how to sleep and be aware of his environment at the same time. He would be alert to Danny waking up. It was another hour or so before Danny did wake up. Steve heard him trying to get to his feet and was immediately at attention and starting to get up. He knew that Danny was in no shape to be up on his own.


	40. Chapter 40

Hope you are enjoying the ride... Just a little left.

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><p>"What are you doing Danno?" Steve said to his friend.<p>

"I have to go to the bathroom." Danny said.

"Wait there." Steve said. He rose to his feet. It was slow and painful, but he was able to manage. Danny on the other hand was pretty unsteady from being dizzy with the fever. Steve wasn't sure what he was going to do exactly since there was no way he could support Danny's weight. It turned out Danny didn't really need that, he just needed someone to sort of guide him and stop him from face planting. Steve was able to do that.

Danny was talking nonsense about a mission and needing to make a plan and that everyone would help. Steve assured him that they were not on any cases right now. They were both on sick leave for a couple of weeks and Chin and Kono were handling everything. Danny kept insisting that this was his mission and he needed to help someone. Steve just let him babble until they got back to the couch.

Once he had Danny safely back on the couch, he made him drink some of the juice. He held the cup to his mouth while Danny took greedy gulps of the juice.

"Hey Danno, slow down. You're going to throw up." Steve said.

The threat of that made Danny slow his drinking to a more human level and then he laid back down. Steve went to the kitchen. He opened the fridge and there was Kono's soup. He tried to figure out how he could manage to get the soup out to Danny when he heard the front door open. He was immediately at alert.

"Hey boss." Kono said as she walked in.

"Hey yourself" Steve said.

"Do you have some particular reason that you are ignoring my phone calls?" she asked.

"Huh?" he said. Then he realized that he had put both of their phones on vibrate and in the commotion he wasn't even sure where his phone was anymore.

"Sorry. Danny's sick. I turned the ringers to vibrate so he could sleep." Steve said.

"That's why I called earlier. He didn't look good this morning and had avoided my question about it. When you guys didn't answer I got worried and used lunch to come and check on you guys." she said.

"We are OK." he said.

"Sure you are." Kono said with a smile and a sarcastic laugh.

"Well Danny has a pretty fever, but I have been giving him fluids, and using a cool compress on him. I got him laying down on the couch and he's been sleeping most of the day." Steve said.

"What about you?" she asked.

"Yeah me too. I have been resting when he was." Steve said.

"Have you guys eaten?" she asked.

"No, that's what I was in here for. I was going to give Danny some soup, but couldn't quite figure out how to get it from here to there with only one arm that was holding the cane." Steve explained.

"Well let me. Seems like you have taken care of everything else. You go see if you can get Danny to sit up so he can eat and I'll bring it in to you. But if you guys are ok, I have to get back after that. Chin and I have a case that we are helping HPD with and I don't want to leave him alone with them for too long, you know." she said.

"But if you think you need me to stay, I will. I know Chin can take care of himself..."she hesitated.

Steve walked into the other room and noticed that Danny was shaking a little now. He grabbed the thermometer and checked his temperature. It was now 102.9 so it had gone up. Steve knew, while alarming, fevers often got higher before they broke and got higher as the day wore on.

He grabbed an old towel from the laundry basket. He told Danny to sit up then put the towel over the front of him so if he spilled it wouldn't be a big mess. He pulled the coffee table closer to the couch and sat on it so he was facing Danny. He had Danny take his medication hoping it would help with the fever too and followed it with a drink of juice. Steve helped him steady the cup because Danny was still shaking pretty badly. Danny took smaller sips this time using the straw. When Steve was content that he had enough, he put the cup on the table.

Kono has warmed the soup and brought it over to them. Steve was pleased to see the soup was in mugs so that they could eat it without needing to use a spoon. Steve wasn't sure how he would fare with that and was pretty sure with Danny's shaking he would be wearing most of it.

Steve again helped Danny steady the mug while he ate. Steve took big sips of his in between and Kono brought him a second bowl which he also ate quickly. The soup was easy going down and was very comforting.

Kono cleaned up the lunch bowls, put fresh water and ice in the bowl, brought the guys pills closer to them as well as juice and water and some snacks. She made sure that they were ok and promised to call later. She threatened Steve within an inch of his life that he needed to actually answer the phone. The phone that she had found under the coffee table. It had probably vibrated off the table and ended up there. He thanked her and agreed.

Danny was sleeping restlessly on the couch when Steve got back there. He used the cool cloth to wipe his head, cheeks and the back of his neck. Danny reached out to him and sat up. He didn't let go. His was looking for comfort and he wanted his friend. Steve motioned for him to move over so that he could sit down next to him.

Steve pulled the table closer so that he could elevate his ankle as it was throbbing again. He sat on the left side of the couch which enabled him to be able to elevate his arm. He shifted so that he was off the tender areas on his back. He had just settled down and closed his eyes when he felt the couch shift and he felt a heavy weight in his lap.

Danny had taken his pillow and put it on Steve's lap then added his head as he cuddled up to Steve. Steve tensed at being so close and intimate with Danny, but then realized that Danny was sound asleep. He relaxed a little. He made sure the pillows were positioned so that his neck was in a good spot and supported properly. If this was what his friend needed then he would do this for him. He took the cloth and kept wiping at his friend until he also fell asleep. He could feel the heat radiating off of Danny's body.

His phone woke Steve a little later.

"Hey Kono, we're fine." he answered.

"Good thing boss. Chin and I are a little behind schedule. We got caught up with the case. You guys doing ok?" she asked.

"Yeah, we're fine. Danny's fever doesn't seem any worse. He's sleeping now." he said.

"Alright, well I'll be on my way in a little while and I'll bring dinner. It will be a late dinner though, I'm sorry." she apologized.

"Don't worry about it. I want more of that soup, so don't bother stopping for anything for us. It will be good for Danny too. We'll see you later. I'll call if we need anything, but we're ok for now." he said.

He hung up and leaned back. He put the warm cloth back in the water to cool it, wiped at Danny a few times then left the cloth in the bowl. He put his arm on Danny's shoulder and fell asleep.

Kono came in and had to smile at the sight of the guys on the couch. She nudged Steve and then helped extricate him from under Danny. She helped him to the bathroom since he was stiff from not moving for a while, but the rest had been good for his ankle. She then led him to the kitchen.

She did the same with Danny. Danny was still babbling about needing a plan and having to figure something out and it was important. She helped him to the table. The guys both ate their soup and then she helped them upstairs.

She took Danny first. She helped him get ready for bed, gave him his medicine and then tucked him in. He smiled goofily at her. She sat with him trying to help him fall asleep. He did close his eyes after a while, but he was very restless. She had brought all the supplies to his room so she used the cloth to cool him. Then she slipped out and went to get Steve.

She helped him upstairs and helped him get ready for bed in the bathroom. Then she headed him for the guest bedroom, but he hesitated. Steve felt like something was wrong. He needed to check on Danny.

"I just want to check on him, OK?" he asked.

"Sure. I just want you to know, when I left him, he was sleeping pretty fitfully." she said.

"Kono, I'm sure you did everything that you could. You know how difficult Danny can be when he doesn't want to do something." he said trying to reassure her. He had heard the regret in her voice that she hadn't been able to settle the detective down.

He walked around to the edge of the bed and sat down. Kono's phone rang. She mouthed to him that it was Chin and that she would be back as she stepped out of the room to talk to him.

Steve rubbed Danny's back and talked soothingly to him trying to get him to calm down. He knew that he wasn't going to get the sleep he needed that way and was afraid that he would hurt his neck the way he was moving around "Hey Danno, settle down for me OK. Just relax. I'm here. If you go to sleep l'll let you have a double rant at me tomorrow when you are feeling better."

Steve felt Danny relax slightly under his hand. He kept talking to him and soon he felt the rhythmic breathing under his hand.

Kono came back in and was surprised to see Danny sleeping peacefully.

Steve tried to pull away from Danny, but Danny grabbed onto his shirt with a grip surprisingly strong for someone minimally conscious. "Don't go."

Steve looked at Kono. He tried to release Danny's grip on him. He was able to finally pry Danny's fingers loose, but then Danny looked scared. His hands were searching for him. Steve couldn't do it. He looked at Kono again. She helped Steve around to the other side of the bed and got him settled. The bed was big enough for both of them. Danny rolled over and put his hand on Steve's arm and started to settle in again. He knew that Steve was close and that was all he needed. It was as if even in his sickened fevered state, he knew if Steve was close, Steve was OK and Danny more than anything just wanted Steve to be OK. They both settled in and the next time Kono checked on them they were snoring in unison.

Danny woke up drenched in the middle of the night. Steve managed to get to his dresser that was only a few steps away and get Danny some dry clothes. Danny managed to change by himself at the edge of the bed and then went right back to sleep. Steve on the other hand was hurting. He didn't want to wake Danny again, so he texted Kono. "Meds please?"

She was in the room within a few minutes with his pills and some water. Steve thankfully took them and went back to sleep. Kono noticed Danny's wet clothes on the floor and picked them up without a word and put them in the hamper.

Danny woke in the morning and pretty much freaked out. His head felt better and he didn't feel feverish. Ok, all good things he thought. Then he noticed he was wearing Steve's shirt and shorts and Steve was in the bed with him. He must have gasped because Steve rolled over and looked at him.

"You OK Danno?" he asked obviously worried.


	41. Chapter 41

Thank you so much to all of my wonderful readers who have stuck with this story for so long. I hope that you did enjoy it. I hope that you will review this last part. I apologize. I rewrote it a few times. I guess this one will do. I wanted to get everything tied up before I left it. Hopefully, I will write something again. I am going to try for something shorter next time. Anyway, please enjoy and thank you to all of you who have stayed with it and reviewed faithfully. You guys really are the best. Thanks for all your kind words.

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><p>"Am I alright? He wants to know if I'm alright. No, Steven, I am most definitely not alright. Why are we sleeping in the same bed and why the hell am I wearing your gigantuan clothes?" he asked. His voice getting louder as he went and his hands were waving like mad.<p>

"You wanted me to stay with you and you were wet from sweat after your fever broke. You changed in the middle of the night. They were the closest so that's what you got." Steve said calmly.

"Wait, why are you even talking to me?" Danny asked very confused and a little quieter.

"Danny, are you sure that you are feeling OK? You aren't making any sense. Why wouldn't I be talking to you? Did you do something that I don't know about? Should I be worried?" Steve asked trying to figure out what Danny was talking about.

"Wait. What happened yesterday? I don't remember much. I know Chin took me to the doctors and I had a killer headache, but after that I don't remember much. I asked you to sleep with me...I mean sleep in the same bed as me?" Danny asked while he was searching his brain to pull out any information that may be hiding in there.

"You told me not to go. That was after Kono had tried for quite a while to settle you down. I was finally able to get you to calm down, but then you didn't want me to leave. I was afraid you were going to hurt yourself the way you were tossing around so I stayed." Steve said like he shared his bed with his very heterosexual best friend everyday and it was nothing.

"And the clothes?" he asked again while gesturing at the obviously loose outfit he was wearing.

"Jeez Danny seriously, I think maybe that fever did fry your brain a little. Haven't you been listening? You had a fever. Your fever broke sometime in the middle of the night. You were soaked from the sweat and needed to change. I wasn't exactly in any shape to go get your clothes, so you got whatever I had in the closest drawer to me." Steve explained.

"So I'm afraid to ask what else happened yesterday if the final act was us sharing the bed and me in your clothes. I'm not sure I even want to know...Yes, I do. Spill. What else happened yesterday?" he asked curiously.

Steve tried to give Danny a run down of the day. He gave him the facts, but left out the important stuff that Danny wanted to know.

"So if Kono and Chin were back at work when I got sick, who took care of me? I must have been in pretty bad shape if I don't even remember it." he said embarrassed.

Steve hesitated for a minute then said, "I did."

"You?" Danny asked in disbelief.

"What don't you think that I am capable of taking care of another human being. I had to do it all the time when I was on missions Danny." Steve explained.

"Yeah, but you weren't hurt too then." Danny said slowly.

"Sometimes I was." Steve said quietly, but matter of factly. "You were sick. You needed help. I may not have been the best nurse, but you survived. Your brains didn't even get fried from your fever although you had me a little worried for a while" Steve continued.

"Yeah, but what about you? That couldn't have been good for you? I remember you being in a good amount of pain." Danny asked guiltily.

"Danny, I'm fine. I kept up with my pills. I actually feel better today then I have in a while. I think I was in a little rut with feeling like I couldn't do anything. Now I know I can. I think in some strange way you getting sick actually helped me." Steve said.

"You know that you are a sick individual Steven and that you need therapy, right?" Danny asked with a smile, glad to have the old Steve back.

"Why are you smiling at me like that? It's a little creepy. Especially while we are sharing a bed and you are wearing my clothes." Steve said.

"Just...Thanks man and I'm glad to have you back. You really had us really worried there for a while." Danny said.

"Us?" Steve questioned.

"Yeah, you know, Chin, Kono, me and ... Cat." he said.

"You called Cat?" he asked not sure whether he was more surprised or embarrassed.

"I know you said her number was for emergencies, but it was Steve. If you could only have seen yourself. It was scary." Danny started. "She explained to me, without betraying any national security confidences, some of what you had dealt with in combat and that she had seen you like this before when you had been hurt. She told me you needed a mission or something to make yourself useful. I wanted to come up with a plan, but then I got sick. Little did I know that my being sick was exactly what you needed. I guess I was your mission." Danny said.

"I should get a medal for bravery after what you put me through. You are a bad patient. You wouldn't settle down for anyone but me so I had to keep staying with you to get you to sleep. Do you have any idea how pitiful you are when you are sick? There was no way I could just leave you like that."

"Well thanks brother. I haven't been that sick in a long time. It means a lot that you had my back even when I was like that." Danny said.

"No problem. You would have done it for me." Steve said.

"Huh!" Danny said.

"What?" Steve wanted to know.

"I guess you are human after all. You really had me fooled." Danny said with a smile.

"Ha Ha Danno. You better watch out. I know things about you that you would rather I didn't know. Did I tell you that you talk in your sleep too?" Steve teased.

"I do not." Danny yelled, but he wasn't really sure if he did. Lord only knew what he could have said if that was true.

"Alright. Whatever you say. Don't you think it's about time we get up before this starts to get any more awkward than it already is?" Steve asked.

Steve edged toward the end of the bed and limped around to Danny. Danny stood up, but was still a little dizzy. They were certainly a pair. Steve grabbed a change of clothes as Kono walked in. She had heard their bickering, but didn't want to interrupt. She waited until it sounded like they needed help then she decided to come in.

"Alright. Where is it that you two think that you are going?" she asked in a motherly tone.

"We're going downstairs." they answered in unison.

"Oh no you aren't. We made a deal. No going downstairs alone until Chin and I say it's OK and I do NOT say that it is OK." She said with her best stern voice.

"Well he needs a shower then." Steve said and pointed to Danny.

"Yeah look who's talking. I wouldn't exactly say you were smelling like a bouquet of flowers either." Danny countered.

"That's only because your stink rubbed off on me. I think I'm going to have to burn my sheets too." Steve joked.

"Kono, I wouldn't mind a shower actually. Would you mind?" he asked politely.

"Not at all Danny. You head in there and I will get you some clean clothes and stuff. Do you think that you can manage?" she asked.

"My head's a little dizzy still, but I think I'll be OK." he said.

"Let me get you in there safe then I'll go. You can sit on the edge until I get back." She said.

She helped Danny and he took his shower. Steve stripped the bed and put all the sheets in a pile. He did his best to make the bed one handed. It was far from perfect, but it was done and the room was in some semblance of order when Danny got back out. Steve was sitting in the chair by his bed with his eyes closed and his ankle on the bed.

Danny knew that he was starting to be in pain. He went to the nightstand on the other side of the bed where Steve's pill bottle was. He didn't know that Kono had been in during the night to give him some meds. He grabbed the pill bottle and the 1/2 empty bottle of water and brought them to Steve. He sat on the bed opposite him. He gently put his hand on Steve's leg. Steve's eyes immediately popped open. Danny held the pills and the water up to Steve.

Steve knew he was caught. He took the pills and the water and laid his head back again. Kono helped Danny downstairs to the kitchen while Steve relaxed.

"You OK for your shower now boss?" Kono asked as she returned to his room.

"Yeah I guess. It's just a little sore." he said pointing at his ankle.

"Alright, well let's get your shower done and then get you downstairs where you can relax a little." she said. "It's Danny's turn to help you today, lord knows you paid your dues yesterday...and last night." Kono said with a sly smile.

When his shower was done she helped him quickly downstairs and to the kitchen for breakfast. She went to shower as she was running really behind and was going to be late for work if she didn't hurry.

"Hey don't you want that wrapped? And where is your brace? Aren't you supposed to be wearing it? he asked pointing to Steve's naked foot.

"It must be in there." he said as he pointed to the other room where Kono had put down some of the things that they would need for later. They had both forgotten to put the brace back on.

"Well were you planning on putting it back on?" he asked.

"Kono's late. It's hard to do with only one hand." he said looking down.

"You big goof. Just wait a second and I'll be right back." Danny said as he went to get the wrap and the brace from the bathroom.

He sat back down at the edge of the bed. He pulled Steve's ankle into his lap and carefully wrapped the injured ankle and then put the brace on it.

"Better?" he asked.

"Yeah, thanks." he said.

"So what are we going to do today?" Danny asked.

"We are on lockdown so not too much. Just watch some TV and relax I guess. Neither of us has really gotten to do that in a while. Resting while on pain killers or because of a fever does not qualify as resting." Steve clarified.

"Do you need anything before I go? Call me if you need me." Kono yelled as she breezed by them on her way out the door. She stopped for a minute looked back and said "Phones?" They both obediently reached into their pockets and pulled out their phones to show to her. "Alright, I expect a call if you need anything and if not I expect to talk to you at lunch time. Got it?"

"Yes Mom." They answered in unison with big stupid grins on their faces.

They finished and cleared the table then went back into the other room. Danny had not been wearing his brace. His neck felt OK so far, but it was a little stiff.

"Hey man how about one of those McGarrett neck rubs?" Danny asked.

"Why, is you neck OK? Did you hurt it? Do you need me to call Kono?" Steve asked worried.

"No man, calm down. You have aneurysm face. Relax. It's a little stiff and I want to do my exercises and I thought that you could loosen it up a little for me so that I could do better with the exercises." Danny explained.

"Oh, OK. Sure. You could have said that in the first place." Steve said.

Danny just shot him a look, but moved so that he was at the right angle for Steve to work his magic. Then he worked on his stretches. His neck was really coming along and his knee was feeling better. The day of being off it while he was sick had really made a difference. He knew that Steve must have made sure he had ice on it and kept it elevated. Between that and the shot helping to reduce the swelling, it was almost starting to feel better. Not all the way better, but good enough that he was able to take a few steps here and there without the cane.

Steve's arm was feeling a little better too. He was moving his hand and wrist inside the sling and was able to hold light things without being in agony. He still had a little more time with the splint and the sling, but he was feeling better. His ankle was still giving him grief. The more he stayed off it, the better it felt. Now that Danny wasn't sick, he should be able to really rest it today. The bruises on his back still hurt when touched, and he was almost able to sit on the couch without wincing.

They spent the day relaxing watching a CHiPs marathon and arguing over which one of them would be Ponch. They took turns taking care of each other. Kono called at lunch and they told her that they had it under control. They let whoever was hurting or tired rest while the other did things that needed to be done. Danny was still tired and a little weak from being so sick, but he was on the mend. The guys had picked up a routine and were back to easily reading each other by the end of the day. Looks were exchanged and body language read to determine who was hurting more. It wasn't necessary to verbalize it. By the end of the week they were back into their old rhythm and were really starting to annoy each other. Danny returned to his own apartment, but they checked on each other.

After another week Danny was no longer wearing the neck brace except when he would have a flare. He was only using the cane for long distances, no more in the house or in the office. Steve's arm had come out of the sling and he had started therapy on the elbow. Like everything else Steve did, he was doing wonderful with it and the therapists expected him to make a full recovery in no time. The bruising on his back had faded and only the outlines of where they had been were still visible if you really looked. His ankle was tolerable. He was still walking with the cane for any length and on stairs as well. They had both returned to work for desk duty only. They were getting caught up on lots of back-logged paperwork. There were still times that Danny's neck would ache from the countless hours hunched over the paperwork. Steve would give him massages to help his neck and Danny would reciprocate with Steve's aching ankle.

Finally, they were both released for duty and were back in fighting shape. Canes were gone, sling and braces gone. Chin and Kono were back from their assignments with HPD. When the first case came in, they were both chomping at the bit to go. Steve had answered the phone. It was the governor. The son of one of her old friends was missing. Steve gave them the run down of all the information that the governor had just shared with him. Chin was looking up locations and Kono was trying to track the car with the plates.

Danny and Steve looked at each other and both said "I'll drive" as they both dove for the keys sitting on Steve's desk. Everyone laughed, but Kono grabbed them first as she was closer and said "Actually, I think I'll drive. Danny you're with me and Steve you can go with Chin."

Danny and Steve looked at each other and put on their best pouting faces, but did as they were told. They might have both been in fighting shape, but neither of them really wanted to mess with Kono. Not on their first day back at least. Tomorrow, well that was a different story.

* * *

><p>Hope that you liked it. I enjoyed writing it. Thanks for sticking with it and with me. You guys are really great. Thanks again...<p> 


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